Following Hamas’ large scale military offensive against Israel on the morning of 7 October 2023, the longstanding Israel-Gaza conflict has escalated considerably.

At the time of writing, the majority of the fighting is reported to take place in the southern part of Israel. According to our local correspondents, Ashkelon port is in principle closed, but permission to berth or discharge cargo while moored at the port’s anchorage may be granted on a case-by-case basis. Ashdod port is still in operation but applies strict entry procedures for vessels carrying hazardous materials. Other Israeli ports, including Haifa, Hadera and Eliat, are currently reported to be unaffected and operating as before the conflict escalated. However, as the situation continues to evolve, the status of Israeli ports can also change.

Advice is likely to evolve quickly

The situation in Israel remains volatile and we recommend ship operators and their masters trading to Israeli ports to:

• make frequent checks with local sources of information, e.g. vessel agents, local authorities, and/or Gard’s correspondent, to obtain the most up-to-date and reliable security information available at any given time,
• carefully assess all port calls on a case-by-case basis, and
• review their relevant contingency plans accordingly.

Decision on crew shore leave should always be taken with the prevailing local security situation in mind.

As Israel is already included in the Joint War Committee’s (JWC) Listed Areas for Hull War, Piracy, Terrorism and Related Perils, we also recommend conferring with the vessel’s war insurer well in advance of arrival at any Israeli port.

Source: GARD