Basra tribe calls on government to find sailors missing for weeks

BASRA — The Bani Asad tribe called Thursday on Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and the Iraqi government to urgently investigate the disappearance of several Iraqi sailors who lost contact with their families on May 5 while working aboard cargo vessels near Iran’s Kish Island.

Relatives said during a press conference in Basra’s Al-Maqal area that contact was lost while the crew were aboard civilian cargo vessels Bridge 1 and Bridge 2, transporting iron shipments between Kish Island and ports in the United Arab Emirates. Families said they believed the ships may have been caught in the naval blockade enforced between Iranian and U.S. forces.

Three sailors from Basra were aboard: Diaa Abdulkhaliq al-Asadi, Diaa Abdulnasih and Haider Rahman Ali. Two additional workers of Indian and Pakistani nationality were also reported missing. The son of one of the sailors said “the last contact with my father was at 11:40 p.m. on May 5, 2026, and he was near Iran’s Kish Island.”

The tribe called on the Prime Minister’s Office, the Foreign Ministry and Basra’s parliamentary representatives to follow the case urgently. Relatives said the incident came weeks after Iraqi fishermen, including a member of the tribe, were allegedly assaulted by Kuwaiti authorities in Iraqi territorial waters.