Hormuz Closure Costs $150 Billion, Kills 22 Seafarers as Security Council Demands Action

Iran's de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz — the conduit for a quarter of the world's seaborne oil — drew near-universal condemnation at the United Nations Security Council on Sept. 17, as expert briefers quantified a crisis rippling from tanker freight rates to fertilizer supplies to food prices in the world's poorest countries.

Foreign Minister Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani of Bahrain chaired the Arria Formula session, framing a conflict that has slashed shipping transits by 95%, tripled freight costs, and left 5,000 seafarers stranded. More than 25 delegations spoke — and all but one condemned the strait's closure as a violation of international law.

• $150 billion in regional losses estimated in the first month alone as Hormuz shipping grinds to a halt

• 22 seafarers dead, 5,000 stranded as ILO and industry demand emergency protections and an international rescue network

• Houthi forces escalate toward controlling the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, launching drones toward Mecca and attacking Saudi tankers

• 61 vulnerable economies simultaneously exposed to oil and cereal import shocks, with 540 million people at risk of acute food insecurity

• US warns Iran "the clock is ticking" while Russia blames the crisis on a "reckless American-Israeli military adventure"

• UNIDIR proposes making maritime security a permanent Security Council agenda item with a dedicated special envoy

• Western delegations condemn Russia's Black Sea attacks and "shadow fleet" operations as compounding the global crisis