Commandos raided fully cellular containership MSC Aries (IMO: 9857169) near the Strait of Hormuz, 50 nautical miles northeast of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, today, by helicopter in an attack attributed to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard amid wider tensions between Tehran and the West: According to reports, the vessel was commandeered by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite force that lost seven members, including two generals, in the Syria strike, Iranian state media reported today. The vessel has now been guided towards the territorial waters of our country, state-run IRNA reported. The vessel reportedly departed from a port in the United Arab Emirates en-route to India carrying 25 crew members onboard the vessel. Reportedly, the vessel is associated with the London-based Zodiac Maritime, a part of the Zodiac Group run by an Israeli billionaire and his family.
The 25 crew onboard the vessel includes 17 Indians including the Master, four Filipinos, two Pakistanis, one Russian and one Estonian, according to official sources. The vessel had last been located off Dubai heading towards the Strait of Hormuz on the afternoon of Apr 12. It had turned off its tracking data (AIS), which has been common for Israeli-affiliated vessels moving through the region.
The Biden administration is urging Iran to immediately release the vessel and its crew. According to reports, India is in touch with Iranian authorities after MSC Aries was seized by Iran.