IFP Exclusive

Official: All crew members of Portuguese ship safe, one freed

The deputy director of the Maritime Affairs Office of Iran’s Ports and Shipping Organization says 24 crew members of seized container ship MCS Aries are in good health and there is no need to be worried about their safety.

Ali Akbar Marzban also rejected claims by foreign media including those supported by the Zionist regime that the crew members of the Portuguese ship are held hostage.

Marzban noted that at the beginning, there were 25 crew members of MCS Aries who came from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia and Estonia but one of them was a woman from India who was returned to her country.

He stressed that only MCS Aries has been seized, not the crew, adding the crew members are freely moving on the ship and have access to internet and telephone to speak with their families.

According to Marzban, the crew may even be visited by the diplomatic staff of their respective countries in Iran and no restrictions exist in this regard.

Marzban underlined that the surplus of the minimum number of crew on the ship may return to their countries and that their representative has been demanded to submit the official request if he wishes, and then appropriate measures will be taken.

The Special Naval Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) seized Israel-linked MCS Aries ship near the Strait of Hormuz on April 13 for violating navigation regulations.

IFP Editorial Staff

The IFP Editorial Staff is composed of dozens of skilled journalists, news-writers, and analysts whose works are edited and published by experienced editors specialized in Iran News. The editor of each IFP Service is responsible for the report published by the Iran Front Page (IFP) news website, and can be contacted through the ways mentioned in the "IFP Editorial Staff" section.

Recent Posts

EU’s Borrell says member states have to nab Netanyahu if ICC issues arrest warrent

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has stated that if the International Criminal Court issues…

1 hour ago

Spokesman: Yemen’s Houthis shoot down US MQ-9 Reaper drone

The military spokesperson for the Houthi movement says the Yemeni fhighters have shot down an…

2 hours ago

Israeli soldiers kill Palestinian students, teacher, doctor in West Bank raid

Israeli soldiers killed Palestinian students, a teacher and a doctor, and wounded others, including a…

2 hours ago

People in Qom hold procession for Pres. Raisi, FM, companions

On Tuesday afternoon, the bodies of the late President Ebrahim Raisi and his companions were…

2 hours ago

More than 900k displaced in Gaza over past two weeks

Over 900,000 people, approximately 40% of Gaza's population, have been displaced in the past two…

4 hours ago

Iranian deputy FM reaffirms commitment to combating terrorism, raps Israeli regime’s war crimes

At the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Astana, Mehdi Safari,…

5 hours ago