Beirut, March 24 — Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a new report that Iranian forces appear to have deliberately struck at least two civilian commercial vessels in and near the Strait of Hormuz on March 11, actions HRW said could amount to war crimes. The organization based its findings on International Maritime Organization (IMO) data, statements by Iranian authorities, imagery and video posted online, and vessel-tracking records.
The IMO reported that between March 1 and 17 it 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. The IMO said those incidents left seven seafarers and one shipyard worker dead, four seafarers missing, and ten people injured, five of them seriously. The IMO collects incident reports from authorities such as the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, the Joint Maritime Information Centre and the Maritime Security Centre Indian Ocean, and verifies information with vessels’ flag states. While the IMO said it could not definitively attribute responsibility for the attacks, its council on March 19 strongly condemned threats and attacks against vessels and Iran’s purported closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
HRW investigators identified the vessels listed by the IMO on public tracking sites and confirmed they were civilian commercial ships with civilian crews. HRW said it corroborated apparent attacks on the tankers Safesea Vishnu and Mayuree Naree, and also found evidence linking damage to the Skylight and Safeen Prestige through photographs, videos and official statements; the MKD Vyom was identified as attacked based on statements alone. HRW said it contacted Iranian authorities on March 18 requesting clarification but received no reply.
HRW singled out the Safesea Vishnu and Mayuree Naree as ships that Iranian authorities themselves claimed to have targeted. On March 11 Ebrahim Zofaghari, a spokesperson for Iran’s armed forces, warned Iran would not allow “one litre of oil” to pass through the Strait of Hormuz if US and Israeli attacks on Iran continued. Iran’s state news agency published an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) statement saying the Safesea Vishnu “had been hit” after failing to comply with IRGC warnings. The IMO said the incident killed at least one crew member and that another nearby oil tanker, the Zefyros, caught fire. Vessel-tracking data places the two ships close together about 50 nautical miles southeast of Basra in or near Iraqi territorial waters.
An Indian national was reported killed in the Safesea Vishnu strike; five other crew members were evacuated, according to India’s foreign ministry. HRW examined three videos posted to X on March 12 showing explosions on the Safesea Vishnu and subsequent firefighting. One video filmed from a nearby vessel shows two large blasts seconds apart; those posting the clips claimed IRGC involvement. HRW said these images are consistent with Reuters reporting that two explosive-laden unmanned boats rammed the tanker.
On the same day the IMO logged attacks on several other vessels, including the container vessel One Majesty, the Marshall Islands-flagged Star Gwyneth and the Thai-flagged Mayuree Naree. Thai authorities reported that two projectiles of unknown origin struck the Mayuree Naree as it entered the Strait of Hormuz, and the Omani navy rescued 20 of the ship’s 23 crew members; three crew reportedly remained aboard the badly damaged vessel after it moved into Iranian waters.
HRW noted that Iranian-linked media and IRGC officials publicly stated they had shelled or struck some of the ships, saying affected vessels had ignored warnings and were attempting to transit without Iran’s permission. On March 19 a shipowner confirmed another vessel named in some Iranian posts, the Express Rome, had not been hit and its crew were safe. Media also reported that Iranian authorities had taken one Nepali into custody from the Strait of Hormuz.
Under international humanitarian law, HRW emphasized, direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects are prohibited and parties to a conflict must take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian harm. Civilian commercial vessels remain civilian objects even if they have commercial ties to states party to a conflict; alleged military necessity must be verified before any attack. HRW said that Iranian statements about the Safesea Vishnu and Mayuree Naree did not assert those ships were military objects nor present evidence that anything aboard them constituted a military target.
HRW concluded that the available evidence — official Iranian statements claiming responsibility for attacks on certain ships, imagery and video showing the aftermath, and IMO incident data — supports the finding that two commercial vessels were apparently deliberately targeted. The group said such conduct, if carried out intentionally or recklessly, could constitute serious violations of the laws of war and may amount to war crimes, with potential criminal liability for those who plan, aid or abet such attacks. HRW said it could not confirm responsibility for the remaining IMO-documented incidents and called for further investigation and accountability.
