‘We can insure the ship, but we cannot insure a human life.’

International Maritime Organization chief Arsenio Dominguez has warned that approximately 20,000 seafarers are stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global shipping through which roughly one-third of the world's seaborne oil passes. Dominguez underscored the humanitarian crisis by noting that while vessels can be insured, human lives cannot, highlighting the vulnerability of crew members caught amid geopolitical tensions in one of the world's most strategically sensitive waterways. The stranding reflects escalating regional instability that has disrupted maritime traffic and left commercial crews unable to transit or disembark. The situation has raised concerns about crew welfare, including food and medical supplies, as well as the broader economic impact on global trade. The warning suggests that without intervention, the crisis could worsen the humanitarian toll on merchant mariners already facing extended deployments away from their families.