Several hundred vessels carrying around 20,000 sailors have been stuck near the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran. Iran has set a $2mn fee for ships of certain countries to cross the strait, but Iranian patrols continue to fire on vessels — including ones that have paid. Suspilne spoke anonymously with a Ukrainian chief mate aboard a container ship of one of the major shipping carriers; he agreed to be interviewed without his company's authorization, saying he wanted the situation made public.
The first day: rockets over Jebel Ali
The chief mate told Suspilne he boarded his vessel at the port of Khalifa, the UAE's main deepwater hub near Abu Dhabi, on 26 February 2026. The ship moved to Jebel Ali port to finish loading and was scheduled to depart on 28 February for two Indian ports, then south around Africa to the United Kingdom.
About an hour before loading was due to finish, the company contacted the captain. "Urgently finish cargo work and leave the port," the message read, according to the sailor. The vessel was undercharged and pulled out ahead of schedule. As it cleared the port, the shelling began.
"Three rockets flew literally over our heads. We saw two interceptions and one 'impact' near the airport in Dubai," he told Suspilne.
The company instructed the captain to head for the exit of the Strait of Hormuz at full speed. At the ship's pace, the strait was four to five hours away. The crew of 31 included nine Ukrainians, 13 Indonesians, and others from various countries. The second mate hid under a deck coaming and shouted at others to take cover, the chief mate recounted; some Indonesian sailors were also frightened. He himself was not, he said — he had spent three years in Ukraine after Russia's full-scale invasion, working in his company's office, before returning to sea in December 2024.
The vessel reached the strait in the evening. Starlink and C-Link communications cut out — jammed, the crew later learned, with the start of the war. Then messages came over the VHF radio. The crew recorded one on a dictaphone: "This is the Iranian military. The strait is closed. If anyone tries to break through — we will shoot at you."
The captain decided not to proceed. Once internet returned, the company ordered the ship back toward UAE waters. According to the chief mate, MarineTraffic showed many vessels transiting the strait in the first two days of the war, but his ship and others belonging to his company did not attempt it.
Two months at anchor and a $2mn toll
The container ship has been at anchor for over two months, the chief mate told Suspilne. Obtaining anchorage permission near the port took five days; active strikes stopped around the sixth day of the war. On the second night, the captain ordered the crew to count rocket launches: they tallied around 300 from Iran toward the UAE and other Gulf states. American fighter jets and helicopters passed overhead several times a day, the sailor said.
After about a month at anchor, the ship's technical water for showers and laundry ran out. The vessel has two 250-cubic-meter tanks, but the desalination system requires the ship to be underway. A barge delivered water; one tank lasts a month. Drinking water and provisions, originally stocked for about a month and a half, were resupplied in March via small boat.
"For 100 cubic meters of water, you have to pay $13,000. And if water is brought on weekends, you pay double. Of course, they bring it on weekends," he said.
The company allowed crew members unlimited Starlink for contact with families, the chief mate noted; ordinarily it is rationed at $9 per sailor per day. Two of six deckhands took up an offer to go home, along with his own replacement. A bus carried them to Oman, since Dubai's airport was closed.
On 9 April, the company called the ship into port to offload containers, take on empty boxes, fill water tanks, and load two barrels of drinking water and provisions, according to the sailor. On 17 April, the captain was told to weigh anchor and head for the strait the next morning, after news reports said it had been reopened. Most tankers, bunkering vessels, and container ships at the anchorage moved to leave, the chief mate said. He and the captain assembled the crew; the majority refused, and the ship stayed put.
A friend aboard a vessel that did try to transit told him that Iranian military or border guards approached in a boat and opened fire with automatic weapons. According to that account, they said: "This is a warning. We are warning you that no one will leave here." The tanker, the friend reported, was on a list of vessels approved for passage, and its company had paid Iran $2mn for the transit. The chief mate said he watched a Chinese tanker enter port through the strait that day; he saw no ship exit.
Asked who is currently blocking the strait — Iran, the United States, or both — the chief mate told Suspilne it was unclear: his ship had not attempted passage and he relied on accounts from acquaintances on other vessels.
The crew now fishes for barracuda, swims in an inflatable pool refilled daily, uses the gym, and watches films in the evenings, he said. On the VHF, he hears chatter from neighboring ships such as "China #1. No, India #1."
Those who feared the situation, or whom the company decided to release, have already left, according to the chief mate. Those remaining draw a war-zone bonus under international standards — pay roughly one and a half times the usual rate. Replacements are hard to recruit: a vacant third mate's post, previously held by a Ukrainian, will now be filled by a Chinese sailor, he said. He told Suspilne he had reassured his family by comparing the situation to Ukraine: "It really was true. While we are at anchor, everything will be fine."
US President Donald Trump recently said Americans were ready to help vessels of several countries transit the strait. Asked whether anything had changed since the statement, the chief mate told Suspilne nothing had: ships attempting transit are still being turned around, and Iran turned away one vessel a day before the interview.
