By Muslim Mirror Staff
Of the 25 crew members aboard the container ship seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards off the UAE coast on Saturday, 17 are Indian, sources have said.
The container ship, MSC Aries, was seized near the Strait of Hormuz by carrying out a “heliborne operation”, and it is now headed towards the territorial waters of Iran, the country’s state-owned IRNA news agency reported.
A source said, “We are aware that Iran has taken control of a cargo ship ‘MSC Aries’. We have learnt that there are 17 Indian nationals onboard. We are in touch with the Iranian authorities through diplomatic channels, both in Tehran and in Delhi, to ensure the security, welfare and early release of the Indian nationals.”
The seizure of the vessel comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East. There are apprehensions of an attack on Israel by Iran, which has vowed retaliation for an airstrike on the consular section of its embassy in Syria’s Damascus almost two weeks ago. Seven people, including, two generals were killed in the airstrike.
Iran has said that the vessel is “related to the Zionist regime (Israel) in the Gulf”. Two websites that track shipping traffic, vesselfinder.com and marinetraffic.com, said MSC Aries is a Portuguese-flagged container ship and its last reported position was in the Gulf.
“Iran will bear the consequences for choosing to escalate the situation any further,” military spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a statement.
“Iran is the world’s biggest state sponsor of terror. Its network of terror doesn’t just threaten the people of Israel, Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria; the regime in Iran fuels the war in Ukraine and beyond… Israel is on high alert. We have increased our readiness to protect Israel from further Iranian aggression. We are also prepared to respond,” the statement said.
The Panama-flagged ship, named MT Gulf Star, was reportedly traveling from the UAE to India when it was intercepted by Iranian forces. According to the ship’s manager, the vessel was in international waters at the time of the seizure. The reasons behind the Iranian action remain unclear, but it is suspected to be related to environmental pollution violations.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has confirmed the incident and is in touch with Iranian authorities to seek the release of the Indian crew members. The MEA spokesperson stated, “We are in touch with the Iranian authorities to ascertain more details about the incident and are making all efforts to ensure the well-being and early release of the Indian nationals.” ( With Agencies Inputs )