80 Attacks, 22 Dead: IMO Chief Warns Shipping Is Now a War Zone
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez reports 80 verified attacks on merchant vessels since February.
IMO Secretary-Arsenio Dominguez warned that geopolitical conflicts are being used as a pretext to target innocent crews, disrupting global trade and endangering lives.
Since 28 February, the IMO has documented 80 attacks in the region, with 22 seafarers confirmed dead. The violence has not been confined to one area: the Black Sea, Sea of Azov, and Red Sea have also seen repeated assaults on commercial shipping, with four fatalities reported in a single Houthi attack on 11 August.
Dominguez made it clear that the attacks are not the work of a single actor. “In the Strait of Hormuz, it is not only one country attacking merchant vessels. In the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, it is not only one country attacking merchant vessels,” he told delegates at the IMO’s Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers in London.
The IMO does not have the mandate to address the root causes of these conflicts, but Dominguez urged Member States to take action. “It falls to you and your capitals, and relevant bodies of the United Nations, to address the root causes and find solutions,” he said.
“We are reaching a point where these conflicts are being used as a pretext to attack merchant vessels and innocent seafarers. Do not use these conflicts to attack innocent seafarers.”
Arsenio Dominguez·IMO Secretary-General
The Human and Economic Cost of Maritime Insecurity: Attacks
The attacks have not only claimed lives but also disrupted global supply chains.
Dominguez’s call to action comes as the IMO prepares to contribute to workable solutions at the technical and operational level. The organisation’s Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers, meeting in London from 14 to 18 September, is discussing safety measures for the transport of dangerous goods, bulk cargoes, and containers, issues that have taken on new urgency in light of the recent attacks.
The IMO has also condemned the latest wave of violence in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov, where dozens of fatalities have been reported in recent months. While precise numbers are difficult to verify, the trend is clear: merchant shipping is increasingly caught in the crossfire of geopolitical disputes.
The resurgence of attacks in the Red Sea, where Houthi forces have targeted vessels, adds another layer of complexity. The IMO has called on all parties to respect international law and ensure the protection of seafarers, who are not combatants in these conflicts. “Seafarers should never become casualties of conflicts to which they are not a party,” Dominguez emphasised.
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