Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
The closure of key maritime routes, including the Strait of Hormuz, has led to a 95% drop in ship traffic since late February, severely impacting the transport of seaborne oil, natural gas, and fertilizers. This disruption is causing significant price increases and delivery delays of millions of tonnes of fertilizer, risking permanent losses in global agricultural outputs, according to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Director-General Qu Dongyu. He stressed that peace and stability are vital for food security, which is a fundamental human right. These disruptions are raising food prices and reducing farmers’ margins, intensifying hunger in countries reliant on imports such as Lebanon and Yemen, where hundreds of thousands already face acute food insecurity.
Diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis are ongoing. The UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, Jean Arnault, has engaged with regional governments, visiting Iran, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Egypt, and participating in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Türkiye. The envoy is prepared to support all initiatives, including one involving Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Türkiye, to facilitate a comprehensive settlement, according to UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, continues to worsen. Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari reported ongoing Israeli strikes and deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Gaza. In the West Bank, escalating violence, displacement, and settlement activity threaten entire communities and may undermine prospects for a two-State solution. An 18-hour Israeli operation in and around Qalandiya Camp involved widespread searches, detentions, movement restrictions, injuries, property damage, and temporary displacement, disrupting access to schools, clinics, and ambulance services, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).