A South Korean court has detained a Chinese luxury cruise liner with over 2,300 people on board in the port of Jeju, following a request from a Chinese shipping company over a legal dispute.
The ship, Henna, operated by Beijing-based HNA Tourism Holding (Group), was detained yesterday before its scheduled departure on a request from iron and steel enterprise Jiangsu Shagang International Trade Co. Ltd.
The ship, with 1,659 passengers and a crew of 650, was bound for the Korean city of Incheon, HNA Tourism was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua news agency.
All passengers and crew have been stranded for more than 20 hours and no departure time has been confirmed. The cruise operator said it is providing free entertainment and round-the-clock food and drinks while trying to work out a solution.
The company said it has reported the incident to Chinese authorities and is coordinating with Korean officials for a safe departure as soon as possible.
