Iran takes seized ships to port, countries check on seafarers’ safety
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A video screen grab that is said to show the seizure of the container ships Francesca and Epaminondas in the Strait of Hormuz. The video was broadcast on Iranian state TV and released on April 22.
PHOTO: REUTERS
DeeperDive is a beta AI feature. Refer to full articles for the facts.
- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard seized two container ships on April 22, with about 40 crew, near the Strait of Hormuz, in retaliation for a prior US seizure.
- US forces seized an Iran-flagged cargo ship on April 19, prompting Iran's retaliation threat. The US also blockaded Iran-linked shipping.
- Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil route, caused Brent crude prices to jump to $102 a barrel from $72.
AI generated
LONDON/ATHENS - Two container ships seized by Iran near the Strait of Hormuz with about 40 crew aboard have been taken towards the port of Bandar Abbas, sources said on April 23, Tehran having vowed to retaliate after US forces seized an Iranian vessel three days earlier.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized the ships on April 22, one operated by MSC, the world’s biggest container shipping group, and according to three sources, the other chartered by the firm.
“Some 20 Iranians armed to the teeth stormed the ship. Sailors are under Iranians’ control, their movements on the ship are limited, but the Iranians are treating them well,” a relative of one of the seafarers involved told Reuters.
“The ship is anchored nine nautical miles from the Iranian coast. Negotiations between MSC and Iran are ongoing, our sailors are fine,” Montenegro’s minister of maritime affairs, Mr Filip Radulovic, told state broadcaster RTCG.
Four sailors on the MSC Francesca including its captain are from Montenegro, he said.
Two Croatians are also aboard, Croatia’s foreign ministry confirmed.
Full details on the crew of the Panama-flagged ship have not been made available, but large container vessels normally require a minimum of about 20.
MSC has declined to comment.
The Liberia-flagged Epaminondas has a crew of 21 members made up of Ukrainians and Filipinos, according to the Greek coast guard. It had been bound for India.
A video screen grab that is said to show the seizure of the container ships Francesca and Epaminondas in the Strait of Hormuz. The video was broadcast on Iranian state TV and released on April 22.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Both crews were reported safe, but authorities in their home countries said they were seeking information about the well-being of the seafarers and working on their release.
There has been no information released about what, if any, cargo the ships were carrying.
Both ships had their tracking transponder systems switched off but maritime security sources said shipping data suggested they were near Bandar Abbas.
Iranian ship seized
On April 19, US forces fired upon and seized the Iran-flagged Touska cargo ship.
“The armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will soon respond and retaliate against this armed piracy by the US military,” a military spokesperson said in response.
Iran’s foreign ministry demanded the immediate release of the vessel, its crew and their families.
No details about its crew have been released.
A US Navy photo shows US forces patrolling the Arabian Sea near the Touska, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship, on April 20.
PHOTO: AFP
Oil flows, prices
Oil prices have jumped on the disruption caused to Gulf exports via the strait, a route which usually handles 20 per cent of the world’s daily crude and liquefied natural gas supply.
Benchmark Brent crude oil futures were trading at US$102 a barrel on April 23 versus US$72 before the war began on Feb 28 and Tehran imposed restrictions on shipping.
The United States responded with a blockade targeting Iran-linked shipping on April 13. Some 31 vessels have been directed to turn around or return to port, US Central Command said.
In addition to three tankers intercepted a day earlier, the US Department of Defence said on April 23 it had boarded the tanker M/T Majestic loaded with Iranian oil in the Indian Ocean.
Separately, data analytics firm Vortexa said it had counted six tankers carrying more than 10 million barrels of Iranian crude crossing the strait and exiting the blockaded area between April 13 and 21. REUTERS
