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Iran
Britain has been under pressure from some European and Gulf allies to release the Iranian-owned tanker. Photo: AFP/ Jorge Guerrero
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Gibraltar's Supreme Court called for the release of the Iranian flagged Grace 1 on Thursday afternoon after a US Department of Justice application to seize the tanker, according to local media.
The Grace 1 tanker was seized on July 4 by the Royal Marines at the request of the Gibraltar authorities on suspicion of transferring two million barrels of Iranian oil to Syria, which is under the EU sanction.
The Gibraltar Supreme Court issued a month long detention of the tanker on July 19 which was due to expire on Saturday.
The government of Gibraltar said there had been “solid documentary evidence the vessel was bound for Syria when it was detained after entering British Gibraltar territorial waters for stores and spares,” according to the Gibraltar Chronicle.
“But the Government of Gibraltar has now received formal written assurances from the Iranian government that the ship will not discharge its cargo in Syria,” the paper said.
“On that basis, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has decided to lift the detention order and allow the ship to sail.”
Gibraltar’s Chief Minister said in a statement: “On 13 August, I received written assurance from the Republic of Iran that, if released, the destination of Grace 1 would not be an entity that is subject to European Union sanctions.”
“I welcome that assurance.”
“This is an important material change in the destination of the vessel and the beneficiary of its cargo.”
“We note the Government of Gibraltar has received assurances from Iran that the Grace 1 will not proceed to Syria. Iran must abide by the assurances they have provided,” a British foreign office spokesman said in a statement.
“We will not stand by and allow Iran – or anyone – to bypass vital EU sanctions on a regime that has deployed chemical weapons against its own people.
“There is no comparison or linkage between Iran’s unacceptable and illegal seizure of, and attacks on, commercial shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and the enforcement of EU Syria sanctions by the Government of Gibraltar.”
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded to the seizure of Grace 1 by impounding British flagged tanker Stena Impero on July 19.
Reacting to the verdict on Twitter, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif slammed US attempts to block the ship’s release.
“Having failed to accomplish its objectives through its Economic Terrorism – including depriving cancer patients of medicine – the US attempted to abuse the legal system to steal our property on the high seas,” Zarif said, referring to US sanctions on Iran’s economy.
“This piracy attempt is indicative of Trump admin’s contempt for the law,” he added.
“According to an announcement by the owner of the tanker, the destination of Grace 1 will be Mediterranean ports,” said Jalil Eslami, head of Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organisation, according to Mehr news agency.
Tensions have been rising between the UK and Iran over the tanker dispute. The security situation in the Strait of Hormuz is highly volatile, with Zarif accusing the US government of turning the region into a “tinderbox”.
This is a developing story...
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