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Oil Tankers
An oil tanker believed to be part of Russia's efforts to evade sanctions went adrift and had to be towed by a German tugboat on Friday in what Germany's foreign minister called a danger to security and tourism in the Baltic Sea. The Panamanian-flagged Eventin was believed to be carrying 99,000 tons of oil from Russia en route to Egypt when it went adrift for several hours north of the German island of Rugen. The Bremen Fighter tugboat was deployed to pull the ship into a harbour, and there was no immediate danger to the environment, the German news agency dpa said. Greenpeace says that Eventin belongs to a so-called Russian shadow fleet, which is made up of hundreds of aging tankers that are dodging sanctions in order to keep oil revenue flowing into the Russian state budget. The sanctions were imposed after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said that the incident shows that Russia is endangering European security not only with its w
A new attempt has begun to try to salvage an oil tanker burning in the Red Sea after attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels, a European Union naval mission said Saturday. The EU's Operation Aspides published images dated Saturday of its vessels escorting ships heading to the Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion. The mission has been actively involved in this complex endeavour, by creating a secure environment, which is necessary for the tugboats to conduct the towing operation, the EU said. A phone number for the mission rang unanswered Saturday. The Sounion came under attack from the Houthis beginning August 21. The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who were taken by a French destroyer to nearby Djibouti. The Houthis later planted explosives aboard the ship and detonated them. That's led to fears the ship's 1 million barrels of crude oil could spill into the Red Sea. The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels wi
A French destroyer rescued 29 mariners from an oil tanker that came under repeated attack in the Red Sea, officials said Thursday, while also destroying a bomb-carrying drone boat in the area. Yemen's Houthi rebels are suspected to have carried out the assault on the Sounion. The attack, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during a monthslong campaign by Houthis targeting ships over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip that has disrupted a trade route through which $1 trillion in cargo typically passes each year. The Sounion is now at anchor in the Red Sea and no longer drifting, the European Union's Operation Aspides said. However, it wasn't clear if the vessel was still ablaze. The vessel had been staffed by a crew of Filipinos and Russians. Military officials did not name the French destroyer involved in the rescue. In the attack Wednesday, men on small boats first opened fire with small arms about 140 km (90 miles) west of the rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeid
An oil tanker held by Iran for over a year after being seized amid tensions between Tehran and the United States reached international waters on Thursday, tracking data showed. The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Advantage Sweet travelled through the Strait of Hormuz, where it was seized in April 2023 by Iran's navy while carrying USD 50 million worth of oil from Kuwait for Chevron Corp. The strait is the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which 20 per cent of the world's oil passes. Tracking data analysed by The Associated Press showed the Advantage Sweet had been unloaded while in Iranian custody and that the vessel listed as its destination Khor Fakkan in the United Arab Emirates, which has been the first port of call for other ships leaving Iranian detention. Iran did not acknowledge the ship's departure. It came after an Iranian court earlier on Thursday ordered the US government to pay more than USD 6.7 billion in compensation over a Swedish company stopping its supply o
Kia India on Friday said it is voluntarily recalling 4,358 units of a petrol variant of its mid-sized sports utility vehicle Seltos to replace the electronic oil pump controller. The company is recalling Smartstream G1.5 Petrol Seltos with IVT transmission, manufactured between February 28 and July 13, 2023, the South Korean automaker said in a statement. The recall has been prompted by a potential error in the electronic oil pump controller, which may impact the performance of the electronic oil pump in the specified transmission variant, it added. The company said it has informed the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) about the voluntary recall initiative. Since the safety of car owners is a top priority, the company is proactively replacing the electronic oil pump controller in the affected units for a seamless ownership experience, the statement said. The automaker will directly reach out to the owners of the vehicles concerned to update them about the voluntary ...
Yemen's Houthi rebels show no signs of ending their reckless attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, the top commander of US naval forces in the Middle East said on Saturday, even as more nations join the international maritime mission to protect vessels in the vital waterway and trade traffic begins to pick up. Since Operation Prosperity Guardian was announced just over 10 days ago, 1,200 merchant ships have travelled through the Red Sea region, and none has been hit by drone or missile strikes, Vice Adm. Brad Cooper said in an Associated Press interview. He said additional countries are expected to sign on. Denmark was the latest, announcing on Friday it plans to send a frigate to the mission that Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced during a visit to Bahrain, where the Navy's 5th Fleet is based, saying that this is an international challenge that demands collective action. The narrow Bab el-Mandeb Strait connects the Gulf of Aden to the Red Sea and then the Suez Canal. Th
Attackers seized a tanker linked to Israel off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, authorities said. While no group immediately claimed responsibility, it comes as at least two other maritime attacks in recent days have been linked to the Israel-Hamas war. The Turkish-captained vessel has a multinational crew consisting of a crew of Russian, Vietnamese, Bulgarian, Indian, Georgian and Filipino nationals. The vessel is carrying a full cargo of phosphoric acid, the ship operator, Zodiac Maritime, said. The attackers seized the Liberian-flagged Central Park, managed by Zodiac Maritime, in the Gulf of Aden, the company and private intelligence firm Ambrey said. An American defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters, also confirmed to The Associated Press that the attack took place. Zodiac called the seizure a suspected piracy incident. Our priority is the safety of our 22 crew onboard, Zodiac said in a statement. Zodiac described the vessel as being
Kuber Group director Vikas Malu, who was injured in a crash between a Rolls-Royce and an oil tanker that killed two people, has been sent a notice by police to join the investigation into the accident, an official said on Sunday. While the oil-tanker's driver and his helper were killed, the three occupants of the car, including Malu, were injured in the accident on the Delhi-Mumbai-Baroda Expressway near Haryana's Umri village on Tuesday afternoon. Malu has been asked to join the investigation, the senior police official said. Initial reports suggested that the oil-tanker was being driven on the wrong side of the road and it collided with the luxury car near Umri village under the Nagina police station limits However, according to the FIR registered on the day of the accident at the police station, it was the car that came from behind and hit the front tyre of the oil tanker. Because of this, the tanker overturned, according to the FIR. Police on Friday had said Malu was admitted