Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Iran has warned ships to use Tehran-approved routes while the IMO has suspended flights from Hormuz after the ship hit.
Updated on 25 Jun 2026
The United Nations’ International Maritime Organization (IMO) has suspended its mission to leave the Strait of Hormuz after a ship was bombed in the Gulf of Oman.
A cargo ship reported a suspected attack while passing through the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman on Thursday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.
Recommended Articles
list of things 3end of series
The ship was said to have been hit on its side by a projectile 14km (7.5 nautical miles) southeast of the port of Dahit in Oman, Britain’s navy added.
A maritime security expert told Reuters that the ship may have been targeted by a drone, although it was not immediately clear who carried out the strikes.
The IMO Tuesday they started moving 600 ships and about 11,000 sailors were blocked by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israeli war in Iran, allowing them to leave the Gulf through two routes – one through Iranian waters and the other through Omani waters under the supervision of the US.
On Thursday, the head of the IMO said the plan to remove the stranded ships from the Gulf would be suspended.
“I have decided to temporarily suspend (the expulsion process) to re-assure that the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and for all those in the region,” IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement.
He added that the agency had obtained the necessary security clearances and ensured that it would run smoothly before the system was launched. But the latest stoppage took place after he was informed of an attack on a ship that had passed through the lake.
Maritime security reports identified the vessel as the Singapore-flagged Ever Lovely. The ship was not operating in accordance with the IMO’s migration policy.
The report of the ship’s derailment came hours after Iran told ships to stop using the waterway without Tehran’s permission.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ordered two Panamanian-flagged ships to change course earlier Thursday, British naval defense firm Ambrey said.
After the incident, the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), the body set up by Iran to Manage the Strait of Hormuz, said that crossings outside its own lanes “will not be covered by the guarantee of a safe passage”.
“Consequences resulting from crossing unauthorized routes will be the responsibility of the owner, operator, and ship’s operator,” PGSA added on X.
‘Tread carefully’
The IMO’s move comes against the backdrop of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed last week between the United States and Iran to work toward an end to the US-Israel conflict over Iran.
When the war began on February 28, Tehran closed the channel, leaving ships on both sides.
MarineTraffic confirmed 70 confirmed crossings on Wednesday and 31 on Tuesday by commercial and energy vessels.
“Helpers are still moving cautiously instead of returning to normal traffic,” the ship’s tracking company said. This compares to pre-war levels of about 120 per day.
Oman’s Ministry of Defense has called for the evacuation to be phased out, warning that the current situation poses a greater risk and requires a slow, controlled movement of ships. Denmark has also said it will join an international maritime effort led by France and the UK to help reopen the river.
