IRAN RELEASES PORTUGUESE SHIP SEIZED IN GULF, 5 INDIANS AMONG CREW

Portugal's foreign ministry said on Thursday that Iran has freed seven crew members, including five Indians, from a ship flying the Portuguese flag that had been taken in the Gulf on April 13.

There were 25 crew members on board the impounded MSC Aries; five of them were Indian, one was Filipino, and one was Estonian, and they were all released on Thursday. Before this happened, one Indian crew member had already been released.

The ship was seized in the Strait of Hormuz in the midst of rising hostilities between Israel and Iran.

At the time of the container ship's detention, Iran claimed that it was connected to Israel, and Iranian forces had just launched a massive drone attack against Israel. Seven Iranians were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Damascus prior to this attack.

Portugal had called Iran's ambassador on April 16 and requested that the ship and its crew be released. Later, on April 27, Iran declared that it was thinking of releasing more crew members.

The ship's owners were connected to Israel, according to a spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry, who stated, "It is certain that this ship belongs to the Zionist regime."

2024-05-09T16:45:37Z dg43tfdfdgfd