(New York, N.Y.) – United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is announcing the addition of 23 vessels to its “Ghost Armada” list. This underscores how, even amid the U.N. snapback sanctions, the regime continues to expand its illegal oil and shipping networks.
Notably, ten out of these 23 newly listed vessels are flagged by Panama. This reflects a persistent trend that UANI has monitored and exposed since 2020 through its investigations into Panama’s role in flagging tankers carrying Iranian oil. UANI recently publicized these findings in its article published in The Hill in August, which prompted Panama to remove 650 vessels from its registry. This new data demonstrates that Panama’s registry continues to offer cover for ships enabling Iran’s sanctions evasion. The foregoing will only reinforce UANI’s commitment to spotlighting specific flag states, insurers, classification societies and all maritime actors complicit in circumventing international law.
The 23 vessels added to UANI’s “Ghost Armada” are AL SIDEEQ (IMO: 9312509), LONG XIANG (IMO: 9291236), M K A (IMO: 9269403), NEW VENTURE (IMO: 9281580), PIX (IMO: 9298284) SENHUB (IMO: 9352559), MACKEREL (IMO: 9234628), ROYAL LADY (IMO: 9300829), INVICTA (IMO: 9250543), DAKUSH (IMO: 9278698), REMIZ (IMO: 9223344), STAR ADVANCE (IMO: 9149249), YQ HARMONY (IMO: 9258612), SILVER DAWN (IMO: 9197155), AMBER 6 (IMO: 9235713), ILL GAP (IMO: 9294305), HAWKS LIBERTY (IMO: 9228722), NORA (IMO: 9237539), OMRA (IMO: 9264881), NORTH STAR (IMO: 9299563), NOMIKI (IMO: 9242443), XI XIU (IMO: 9233789), and GOLDEN EAGLE (IMO: 9255684).
These vessels have been identified as part of Iran’s expanding “Ghost Armada,” a network of aging tankers operating under opaque ownership structures, falsified documentation, and manipulated AIS signals to mask their cargo origin and destinations. Each ship represents a critical link in Tehran’s illicit effort to circumvent sanctions and fund its drone, missile and nuclear programs, as well as its sponsorship of terrorist groups and organisations.
In accordance with U.S. President Donald Trump’s National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 (“NSPM-2”) restoring maximum pressure on the Islamic Republic of Iran and reducing its oil exports to zero, UANI will continue to monitor and expose tankers complicit in sanctions evasion through advanced satellite imagery, maritime data analysis and open-source intelligence.
UANI calls on the international community to blacklist these ships, deny them access to insurance and port services, and ensure comprehensive sanctions compliance across all maritime sectors.
The updated Ghost Armada list is available here and will continue to expand as UANI tracks additional ships smuggling sanctioned Iranian oil.