Beirut [Lebanon], March 24 (ANI): A fresh report from Human Rights Watch on Tuesday claimed Iranian forces appear to have deliberately targeted at least two civilian commercial ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month, on March 11 — actions that would amount to war crimes.
The report cited findings from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which noted that starting March 1 Iranian forces reportedly began attacking commercial ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz in response to US and Israeli attacks on Iran. It further noted that on March 11 Ebrahim Zofaghari, a spokesperson for Iran’s armed forces, warned Iran would not allow “one litre of oil” to pass via the Strait of Hormuz if attacks against Iran by the United States and Israel continued.
“Human Rights Watch documented the apparent deliberate targeting of two commercial ships, the Safesea Vishnu and the Mayuree Naree, on March 11 through statements made by Iranian authorities claiming these attacks; photographs and videos posted online of the direct aftermath of the attacks and, in the case of the Safesea Vishnu, the apparent moment of attack; and data gathered by the IMO,” the organization said.
The IMO confirmed that between March 1 and 17 it had recorded 17 incidents of damage to commercial vessels from 16 apparent attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf, and the Gulf of Oman. It reported seven seafarers and one shipyard worker killed, four seafarers missing, and ten people injured, five severely. An IMO representative told Human Rights Watch the organization receives data from authorities such as the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the Joint Maritime Information Centre (JMIC), and the Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean (MSCIO), and that it directly verifies information with vessels’ flag states. The IMO said it was unable to confirm who was responsible for the 16 attacks but on March 19 its Council “strongly condemned the threats and attacks against vessels and purported closure of the Strait of Hormuz by the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Human Rights Watch identified all the vessels included by the IMO on vessel-tracking websites and corroborated they were civilian commercial vessels with civilian crews, and in some cases identified their location at the time of attack. In addition to corroborating attacks on the Safesea Vishnu and Mayuree Naree, researchers corroborated attacks on Skylight and Safeen Prestige through photographs and videos and online statements by government and military entities, and identified the MKD Vyom as attacked by statements alone. In these three cases HRW could not confirm who was responsible.
Human Rights Watch wrote to Iranian authorities on March 18 seeking clarification but received no response.
“Iranian authorities, in statements they made pertaining to the two ships they claimed to have targeted — the Safesea Vishnu and Mayuree Naree — did not state that the vessels were military objects, nor did they present any evidence to demonstrate that anything on board the ships could have constituted military objects,” HRW said.
Under international humanitarian law, it is forbidden to carry out direct attacks against civilians and civilian objects, and warring parties must take all feasible precautions to avoid harm to civilians. Civilian vessels with commercial ties to the United States or Israel remain civilian objects. Warring parties must verify targets are military objectives. A person who commits serious violations of the laws of war with criminal intent — intentionally or recklessly — may be prosecuted for war crimes, and individuals may be held criminally liable for assisting, facilitating, aiding, or abetting a war crime, HRW noted.
On March 12, Iran’s state news agency IRNA published an IRGC statement confirming the Safesea Vishnu “had been hit in the northern Persian Gulf after failing to comply with and ignoring the warnings of the IRGC Navy.” The IMO said one crew member was killed in the attack and reported that another oil tanker, the Zefyros, caught fire in the same incident. The two vessels were next to each other within Iraqi territorial waters approximately 50 nautical miles southeast of Basra, according to vessel-tracking measurements.
An Indian national died in the Safesea Vishnu attack. The tanker was attacked off Khor Al Zubair port near Basra on March 9 inside Iraq’s territorial waters. India’s Ministry of External Affairs official Aseem Mahajan said one crew member had died and five others had been evacuated and lodged in a Basra hotel.
Human Rights Watch analyzed three videos posted to X by different accounts on March 12, the earliest at 12:32 a.m. One video, filmed from a nearby vessel, shows two large explosions on the Safesea Vishnu seconds apart; those filming claim to be the IRGC Navy and say they destroyed a US ship. The Safesea Vishnu is engulfed in flames. HRW said this supports Reuters’ account from the US owner and operator that two explosive-laden unmanned boats rammed the vessel. Another video shows firefighters spraying the Safesea Vishnu from a nearby boat.
The New York Times reported that, according to Iraq’s oil export authority, the two vessels were used by Iraq for its own oil transport, and that one vessel, flying the flag of the Marshall Islands, was owned by an American company.
On the same day, the IMO said three other vessels were attacked in the strait: One Majesty (a container vessel), the Marshall Islands-flagged Star Gwyneth, and the Thai-flagged Mayuree Naree. The Royal Thai Navy said an initial report indicated “two projectiles of unknown origin” struck the Mayuree Naree as it sailed into the Strait of Hormuz after departing the UAE. The Omani navy rescued 20 of the vessel’s 23 crew members, the Omani Maritime Security Center confirmed. On March 18 the Royal Thai Navy reported the ship had moved from Omani to Iranian territorial waters; three crew members reportedly remain on board the seriously damaged vessel.
HRW noted that on the day of those reported attacks Tasnim News, affiliated with the IRGC, posted on Telegram that the Mayuree Naree was “shelled by Iranian fighters hours ago after ignoring the warnings of the IRGC Navy and illegally insisting on passing through the Strait of Hormuz.” IRGC naval commander Alireza Tangsiri posted on X the same day that the Mayuree Naree had “ignored [Iranian authorities’] warnings and intended to pass through the strait but was caught,” adding that any vessel intending to pass must obtain permission from Iran. Both statements also claimed Iranian forces had attacked another ship, the Express Rome — a ship not listed by the IMO. On March 19 Danaos Shipping, owners of Express Rome, confirmed the ship had not been hit and its crew was safe.
According to media reports on March 20, a Nepali Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said Iranian authorities had “taken one Nepali into custody from the Strait of Hormuz.”
While HRW could not confirm who was responsible for the other 14 IMO-documented attacks, it said Iranian authorities have repeatedly demonstrated a clear intention to attack ships, including civilian vessels, attempting to pass through the strait. (ANI)
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