June 30, 2026
MANILA – All 40 Filipino seafarers on board the two ships that were attacked recently by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz are safe and unhurt, Palace press officer Claire Castro said on Monday.
Both vessels were attacked one after the other, despite the 60-day accord signed by the United States and Iran which had agreed to end days of back-and-forth fighting in the strategic waterway and resume peace talks.
Citing information from Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Cacdac, Castro said that none of the 21 Filipino crew members, including the captain, were injured on board the Singaporean-flagged MV Ever Lovely.
The ship, owned by Taiwan shipping operator Evergreen Marine Corp., was off Oman when it was struck by “an unidentified object” around 10 p.m. on June 25 (Philippine time), while it was leaving the Strait of Hormuz.
“The crew’s preliminary inspection revealed damage to the eaves of the bridge superstructure and to the bridge windows,” Evergreen Marine said in a statement to Taiwan’s stock exchange.
“No injuries were sustained by personnel, and the vessel and cargo remained unharmed,” it added.
The ship remains seaworthy and continues on its voyage. It is expected to arrive in Singapore on July 5, Castro said.
Bridge damaged
The 19 Filipino seafarers of the Panama-flagged supertanker Kiku were also declared safe and unhurt after it was struck by an Iranian drone about 4 p.m. on June 27 (Philippine time). Its bridge was reported to be damaged.
The tanker was carrying 2 million barrels of oil at the time although no oil spill or pollution has been reported.
“Authorities are monitoring the condition of the vessels and those onboard, and are coordinating with the Filipino crew members in case they require onboard psychosocial assistance,” Castro said.
She added that around 2,100 Filipino seafarers aboard 85 ships have already exited the strait. But 3,800 other Filipinos remain onboard vessels in the Persian Gulf with authorities continuing to closely monitor their situation.
Rescue operations halted
The attack on MV Ever Lovely led to the suspension of an operation launched by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to evacuate ships that have been stranded in the Persian Gulf since the Middle East crisis broke out on Feb. 28.
The IMO said it had successfully evacuated 115 ships with about 2,500 stranded seafarers before it suspended the operation aimed at rescuing some 11,000 mariners stranded on 600 vessels for the past four months.
“I have decided to temporarily pause its 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.
The attack on Ever Lovely occurred during the Day of the Seafarer, with Dominguez noting the importance of ensuring the continued evacuation of the thousands of seafarers stranded in the gulf can proceed “without the risk of them becoming collateral victims in this geopolitical conflict.”
Following reports of the attack, Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority—a new government agency established to control shipping in the strait—wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that transit outside its own designated routes “will not be covered by the guarantee of safe passage.”
At least 14 seafarers have been killed and more than 40 commercial vessels attacked during the conflict, according to IMO. —WITH A REPORT FROM ANDRE ESGUERRA, INTERN