Nearly 20,000 seafarers are stranded in Middle East waters due to escalating attacks on commercial vessels, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has disclosed. IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez expressed concern over the growing danger and uncertainty facing the crew members, citing repeated assaults and seizures of ships in the region. The attacks have disrupted shipping routes and left thousands of sailors unable to complete voyages or return home. Dominguez condemned the ongoing violence against maritime traffic, emphasizing the urgent need to protect both lives and global supply chains. No specific countries or groups were named in the statement as being responsible for the attacks. The IMO did not provide a breakdown of nationalities among the affected seafarers or specify which shipping lanes are most impacted. The organisation called for coordinated international action to secure vital sea passages.
Arsenio Dominguez highlights the danger to 20,000 seafarers yet offers no plan to extract them, leaving their fate in limbo. Many of these sailors could be Nigerian nationals, given the country's growing presence in global shipping. Their entrapment risks not only lives but also livelihoods of families depending on remittances. The silence on nationalities and rescue timelines deepens the uncertainty surrounding their ordeal.
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