The deaths of three sailors in a Houthi missile attack on a ship in the Red Sea last week heightened fears among the seafaring community, with some looking to abandon contracts and return home.
The shipping industry has been placed on a war footing since the first assaults on commercial vessels by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels began in November, after the start of the war in Gaza.
A chief officer, bosun and cook on board the Barbados-flagged True Confidence tanker were killed while sailing off the coast of Yemen last Wednesday, in the first deadly incident amid dozens of attacks on commercial vessels.
Many due to sail the same busy trade route are now looking to be released from working contracts.
This situation is going to be impacting a lot of seafarers and their families, these deaths will scare them
Chirag Bahri,
former hostage taken by Somali pirates
The crisis poses a recruitment problem for shipping companies, the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network said.
Treacherous journey
“At the moment, a lot of ships are still transiting the Red Sea,” said Chirag Bahri, the network’s international operations manager.
“But because some companies are on regular charters and operating vessels that need to deliver, they can't go around the Cape of Good Hope because they are carrying perishable cargo.
“This attack was the first fatal incident, we also have a few injured and one of them has had his leg amputated.
“This situation is going to be impacting a lot of seafarers and their families, these deaths will scare them as it is a frightening situation they find themselves in, for the entire shipping industry.”
Mr Bahri, a former seafarer who was taken hostage on a tanker by Somali pirates during his career, recognises the unrest many crew now feel. Although the current crisis will have similar ramifications for crew, companies have a legal obligation to offer them a way out.
“The companies are suffering a lot and obviously there's a lot of tension among seafarers,” he said.
“In my situation, we knew we were not going to get killed and the company eventually paid the ransom. In this scenario, if a rocket hits your vessel in the oil tank or somewhere on the bridge – it is catastrophic.
“High-risk routes are subject to maritime rules. This is not the first time they have been applied, as they were in place during the Gulf War and the height of Somali piracy.
“Unfortunately not all seafarers are aware of this and how it can be used to protect themselves.”
High risk areas
After an increase in attacks in February, the International Bargaining Forum Warlike Operations Area Committee agreed to additional measures to support seafarers’ safety and welfare.
High-risk areas were expanded to include the Southern Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and surrounding waters.
It allows the sailors the right to refuse to sail into the area with repatriation at a company’s cost and compensation equal to two months' basic wage.
However, the two months' basic pay compensation is not applicable if the sailors transferred to another vessel belonging or related to the same owner, on the same rank, wages and terms.
Seafarers must give seven days’ notice before entering the area, but those already on vessels or due to transit within the seven-day window cannot exercise their right to repatriation.
The number of tankers transiting through the high-risk area has more than halved since the first attacks, and the hijacking of the Galaxy Leader in November, which remains under Houthi control.
Raeid Tashtoush is a welfare support manager for the Mission to Seafarers in Aqaba, Jordan and the charity’s Arab World Co-ordinator.
Before the crisis, he would visit up to 50 ships a month – but since February, visits have more than halved.
“This crisis is affecting all seafarers,” he said. “Because of the situation, some are not allowed to leave their ships or the port so are unable to send money back home to their families. We are helping with that.
“Seafarers trust us, as we are not making any profit from them, like banks or agents for example.
“Recently, crew asked me about the situation and when the war will stop. Many believe they have no choice but to follow their contract and the routes the owners say they should take.
“Many do not want to come back to the Red Sea. They want our help, but they also know there is only so much we can do. Many of them have no choice but to sail through.”
Diversions from the danger zone
Diverting goods, including crude oil, from the Middle East to Europe through the Cape of Good Hope in Southern Africa adds about 18 days at sea.
Suez Canal traffic has decreased by 45 per cent, industry analysts Kpler found.
Ships transiting between Europe and Asia via the Suez Canal must pass through the Bab Al Mandeb strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
It is a vital oil and gas transit route, accounting for 12 per cent of seaborne oil trade and 8 per cent of liquefied natural gas in the first half of 2023.
Rev John Attenborough, the Mission to Seafarers regional director for the Middle East and South Asia, and chaplain to the Cyprus Ports, supported a Sri Lankan crew of six who refused to sail through the Red Sea.
He said many crews were facing similar difficult decisions. “Some shipping companies are doing excellent work because they're diverting their ships at great cost,” said Rev Attenborough, in Limassol.
“The industry already has all sorts of impacts, from rising fuel costs, emissions and crew delays.
“The numbers revealed in the seafarer’s happiness index are speaking for themselves – morale is definitely going down.
“Many would love to find alternative employment, but I think a lot of them would struggle financially. This is a job for which they sacrifice their time, efforts, energy and safety for their families.”
Profile Idealz
Company: Idealz
Founded: January 2018
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Size: (employees): 22
Investors: Co-founders and Venture Partners (9 per cent)
THE%20SWIMMERS
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Key products and UAE prices
iPhone XS
With a 5.8-inch screen, it will be an advance version of the iPhone X. It will be dual sim and comes with better battery life, a faster processor and better camera. A new gold colour will be available.
Price: Dh4,229
iPhone XS Max
It is expected to be a grander version of the iPhone X with a 6.5-inch screen; an inch bigger than the screen of the iPhone 8 Plus.
Price: Dh4,649
iPhone XR
A low-cost version of the iPhone X with a 6.1-inch screen, it is expected to attract mass attention. According to industry experts, it is likely to have aluminium edges instead of stainless steel.
Price: Dh3,179
Apple Watch Series 4
More comprehensive health device with edge-to-edge displays that are more than 30 per cent bigger than displays on current models.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Zayed Sustainability Prize
RESULT
Leeds United 1 Manchester City 1
Leeds: Rodrigo (59')
Man City: Sterling (17')
Man of the Match: Rodrigo Moreno (Leeds)
Iran's dirty tricks to dodge sanctions
There’s increased scrutiny on the tricks being used to keep commodities flowing to and from blacklisted countries. Here’s a description of how some work.
1 Going Dark
A common method to transport Iranian oil with stealth is to turn off the Automatic Identification System, an electronic device that pinpoints a ship’s location. Known as going dark, a vessel flicks the switch before berthing and typically reappears days later, masking the location of its load or discharge port.
2. Ship-to-Ship Transfers
A first vessel will take its clandestine cargo away from the country in question before transferring it to a waiting ship, all of this happening out of sight. The vessels will then sail in different directions. For about a third of Iranian exports, more than one tanker typically handles a load before it’s delivered to its final destination, analysts say.
3. Fake Destinations
Signaling the wrong destination to load or unload is another technique. Ships that intend to take cargo from Iran may indicate their loading ports in sanction-free places like Iraq. Ships can keep changing their destinations and end up not berthing at any of them.
4. Rebranded Barrels
Iranian barrels can also be rebranded as oil from a nation free from sanctions such as Iraq. The countries share fields along their border and the crude has similar characteristics. Oil from these deposits can be trucked out to another port and documents forged to hide Iran as the origin.
* Bloomberg
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Results:
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: Eghel De Pine, Pat Cosgrave (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m | Winner: AF Sheaar, Szczepan Mazur, Saeed Al Shamsi
6pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (PA) Group 3 Dh500,000 1,600m | Winner: RB Torch, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (TB) Listed Dh380,000 1,600m | Winner: Forjatt, Chris Hayes, Nicholas Bachalard
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup for Private Owners Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 1,400m | Winner: Hawafez, Connor Beasley, Ridha ben Attia
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 80,000 1,600m | Winner: Qader, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roaulle
The years Ramadan fell in May
Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
NBA Finals results
Game 1: Warriors 124, Cavaliers 114
Game 2: Warriors 122, Cavaliers 103
Game 3: Cavaliers 102, Warriors 110
Game 4: In Cleveland, Sunday (Monday morning UAE)
CONFIRMED%20LINE-UP
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Series information
Pakistan v Dubai
First Test, Dubai International Stadium
Sun Oct 6 to Thu Oct 11
Second Test, Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tue Oct 16 to Sat Oct 20
Play starts at 10am each day
Teams
Pakistan
1 Mohammed Hafeez, 2 Imam-ul-Haq, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Asad Shafiq, 5 Haris Sohail, 6 Babar Azam, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed, 8 Bilal Asif, 9 Yasir Shah, 10, Mohammed Abbas, 11 Wahab Riaz or Mir Hamza
Australia
1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 Mitchell Marsh, 5 Travis Head, 6 Marnus Labuschagne, 7 Tim Paine, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jon Holland
Stage 3 results
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 4:42:33
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:03
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:30
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:56
General Classification after Stage 3:
1 Adam Yates (GBR) Mitchelton-Scott 12:30:02
2 Tadej Pocagar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates 0:01:07
3 Alexey Lutsenko (KAZ) Astana 0:01:35
4 David Gaudu (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 0:01:40
5 Rafal Majka (POL) Bora-Hansgrohe
6 Wilco Kelderman (NED) Team Sunweb) 0:02:06
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
RESULTS
Main card
Bantamweight 56.4kg: Mehdi Eljamari (MAR) beat Abrorbek Madiminbekov (UZB), Split points decision
Super heavyweight 94 kg: Adnan Mohammad (IRN) beat Mohammed Ajaraam (MAR), Split points decision
Lightweight 60kg: Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Faridoon Alik Zai (AFG), RSC round 3
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Taha Marrouni (MAR) beat Mahmood Amin (EGY), Unanimous points decision
Light welterweight 64.5kg: Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE), Unanimous points decision
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Haroun Baka (ALG), KO second round
Concrete and Gold
Foo Fighters
RCA records
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
ANALYSTS’ TOP PICKS OF SAUDI BANKS IN 2019
Analyst: Aqib Mehboob of Saudi Fransi Capital
Top pick: National Commercial Bank
Reason: It will be at the forefront of project financing for government-led projects
Analyst: Shabbir Malik of EFG-Hermes
Top pick: Al Rajhi Bank
Reason: Defensive balance sheet, well positioned in retail segment and positively geared for rising rates
Analyst: Chiradeep Ghosh of Sico Bank
Top pick: Arab National Bank
Reason: Attractive valuation and good growth potential in terms of both balance sheet and dividends
UAE SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Ali Khaseif, Fahad Al Dhanhani, Mohammed Al Shamsi, Adel Al Hosani
Defenders: Bandar Al Ahbabi, Shaheen Abdulrahman, Walid Abbas, Mahmoud Khamis, Mohammed Barghash, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Hassan Al Mahrami, Yousef Jaber, Mohammed Al Attas
Midfielders: Ali Salmeen, Abdullah Ramadan, Abdullah Al Naqbi, Majed Hassan, Abdullah Hamad, Khalfan Mubarak, Khalil Al Hammadi, Tahnoun Al Zaabi, Harib Abdallah, Mohammed Jumah
Forwards: Fabio De Lima, Caio Canedo, Ali Saleh, Ali Mabkhout, Sebastian Tagliabue
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
