On July 12, local time, a commercial vessel was attacked in waters near the Musandam Peninsula in the Strait of Hormuz. The container ship "GFS Galaxy," flying the Cypriot flag, came under assault by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, sustaining damage and catching fire. Crew members were forced to abandon ship, resulting in casualties and a crisis in navigation along the waterway.
The "GFS Galaxy" suffered a strike at its stern that triggered a major blaze, with the engine room severely damaged and the vessel completely losing its ability to navigate. The crew was compelled to evacuate in lifeboats. Omani authorities immediately launched a rescue operation, rescuing 23 crew members, while one remains missing; search-and-rescue efforts are ongoing.
At the time of the incident, the vessel was operating on an East Asia–Middle East route, under a trilateral co‑loading arrangement among the shipping lines ONE, OOCL, and KMTC. Its itinerary covered several key Chinese ports, calling at Qingdao, Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Guangzhou Nansha, and Shenzhen Dachanwan, among others.
Following the attack, Iran announced that, due to unsafe conditions caused by illegal interference from foreign powers, the Strait of Hormuz would be closed effective immediately.
The fire forced all the crew to abandon the ship. The vessel involved is the Cyprus flag container ship GFS Galaxy (IMO 9401271). Built in 2009, it has a maximum container capacity of approximately 6,966 TEUs.
Operated by ONE Japan Ocean Network Leasing, it has long been deeply engaged in the core trunk routes between Asia and the Middle East and is a mainstream carrier on the Middle East route. The vessel involved in this incident is not operated by a single shipping company but adopts the mainstream co-cabin model in the industry, involving three well-known liner companies, with an extremely wide coverage of routes:
1-- ONE ocean network link: corresponding route code IAW
2-- OOCL Orient Overseas Line: Corresponding route code PSGP
3-- KMTC Korea Shipping: Participate in this co-cabin operation simultaneously
The Asia-Middle East route jointly operated by three shipping companies carries a large amount of cross-border domestic import and export goods. The sudden attack on the vessel this time will directly affect the delivery time of goods for the corresponding voyage, and there is a high probability of a chain of problems such as delays, skipping ships and port changes.
In response to the recent attack on the GFS GALAXY round, it is suggested that all cross-border practitioners:
1. Urgently investigate the cargo of the recent ONE, OOCL, and KMTC Middle East routes and verify whether they match the involved voyage.
2. Pay close attention to the subsequent announcements of shipping company regarding ship schedule delays, port changes, and claims, and promptly synchronize them with overseas customers.
3. For recent shipments to the Middle East route, it is necessary to reserve sufficient time buffers in advance to avoid order breach of contract, container detention and port detention fees caused by sudden geopolitical risks.
