UN agency pauses Hormuz ship evacuation initiative after vessel attacked

Iran warns vessels to use only Tehran-approved routes as IMO halts Hormuz evacuation after ship struck.The United Nations’ International Maritime Organization (IMO) has paused its Strait of Hormuz evacuation initiative after a vessel was attacked in the Oman" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="2457" data-entity-type="location">Gulf of Oman.A cargo ship reported a suspected attack as it attempted to ⁠pass through the Strait of Hormuz close to the coast of Oman on Thursday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3IRGC warns against new Hormuz route for ships: What we knowlist 2 of 3Rubio issues Hormuz toll warning as he wraps up Gulf visitlist 3 of 3Krieg: For Iran control of the Strait of Hormuz is about the spoils of warend of listThe ship reported being struck on its starboard side by a projectile 14km (7.5 nautical miles) southeast of Oman’s port of Dahit, the ‌British navy agency added.Another maritime security source told the Reuters news agency that the vessel was likely targeted by a drone, although it was not clear yet who carried out the strike.The IMO on Tuesday began evacuating 600 ships and around 11,000 mariners stranded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="38342" data-entity-type="event">US-Israeli war on Iran, helping them leave the Gulf through two routes – one via Iranian waters and another via Omani waters with US oversight.On Thursday, the head of the IMO said the plan to move stranded ships out of the Gulf will be put on hold.“I have decided to temporarily pause [the evacuation plan’s] implementation in order to reconfirm that the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and all those in the region,” IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement.He said the agency had secured the necessary safety guarantees and verified conditions for safe navigation before the plan began. But the latest suspension came after they were informed of the attack on a vessel that had passed through the strait.Maritime security reporting identified the vessel as the Singapore-flagged container ship, Ever Lovely. The ship was not operating under the IMO evacuation framework.