UN body to meet over Gulf shipping and maritime safety concerns UN's International Maritime Organisation (IMO) will hold an extraordinary session to address the impact of the ongoing conflict on shipping and seafarers in the Gulf, AFP news agency reported. The two-day meeting will consider possible resolutions as concerns grow over maritime safety and disruptions in key shipping routes. Several countries, including the United Kingdom, France and Germany, are urging the IMO council to condemn what they describe as attacks by Iran and threats to close the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, which is also a member of the organisation, blamed the United States and Israel for escalating maritime insecurity. “The adverse maritime repercussions currently affecting shipping and seafarers are a direct and inevitable consequence of these unlawful actions and cannot be viewed in isolation from their underlying cause,” Iran said.