The UN called on Friday, 13 November, 2026, to restore safe navigation in the Strait of Ormuz and around Bab al-Mandeb. Before the Security Council, Khaled Khiari warned that the recovery of energy exports did not mean a return to normal. Ships and their crews remain blocked in the Gulf, while maritime restrictions continue to affect trade.
Ormuz: Alternative roads do not remove the risk
The Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations stressed the difference between the volumes of energy exported and the conditions of navigation. Alternative routes have helped to restore regional exports. However, they do not make commercial roads predictable or safe.
According to Khaled Khiari, disruptions increase energy, transport and insurance. They also threaten food security, particularly because fertilizer shipments remain heavily constrained. Its intervention does not amount to a uniform additional cost for all countries or goods.
The UN calls for the restoration of the passage of ships, in accordance with international law. It also calls for cooperation with the International Maritime Organization, IMO, to improve the safety of navigation. These applications do not constitute the announcement of an effective reopening or the announcement of a new system already operational.
Documented damages, responsibilities to distinguish
The IMO public register on Ormuz and the Middle East, consulted on 14 November, reported 25 confirmed deaths among seamen. This regional review is not the only day of November 13. Detailed entries distinguish damage, injury, missing persons and pollution, rather than grouping these situations under one formula.
The Tariff is as of November 7 in the Strait of Ormuz, with damage and no pollution reported. The Velos Sapphire appears on 4 November, 50 nautical miles north of Madinat Ash Shamal, Qatar. His line mentions damage, the absence of pollution and the death of a sailor.
These examples document pre-Khiari incidents. They do not allow to present new attacks as occurred on Saturday, 14 November. Nor is the table sufficient to assign each incident to the same person responsible.
London supports Qatari mediation
In his statement to the Security Council on 13 November, British Ambassador Sarah MacIntosh called for the reopening of Ormuz. It condemned the attacks it attributed to Iran and affirmed London’s support for the Gulf countries. This British accusation must be distinguished from the IMO technical census.
The representative of the United Kingdom also commended the efforts of the mediators, particularly Qatar, to avoid further escalation. Khaled Khiari encouraged Iran and the United States to seize diplomatic opportunities. The interventions examined do not announce an agreement to terminate the navigation restrictions.
Illustration photograph: oil tanker, Libnanews archive published in June 2019. Date and place of shooting not established. There is no link between the vessel represented and the incidents mentioned. Editorial dress Libnanews.
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