QPRESS
ClipboardImage
ClipboardImage
Gibraltar court extends detention of Iranian tanker for 14 days: Attorney general
A top court in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar has ruled that an Iranian supertanker illegally seized in the Strait of Gibraltar can be detained for up to 14 more days.
The Supreme Court has issued today
s order on the basis that there are reasonable grounds to consider that the detention of the Grace 1 is required for the purposes of compliance with the European Union (EU) Regulation 36/2012 on sanctions on Syria,
Gibraltar
s government said in a statement on Friday.
Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said on Thursday that the territory
s police and customs agencies, aided by a detachment of British Royal Marines, had seized the Iranian
Grace 1
vessel on suspicion of carrying crude oil to Syria, which has been under EU sanctions since 2011.
Earlier on Friday, the Associated Press reported that the vessel
s 28 crew members were being held on the ship for questioning and had not been detained under criminal procedures, citing an unnamed spokesperson for the Gibraltar government.
Spain, which challenges the British ownership of Gibraltar, has said the seizure was prompted by a US request to Britain and appeared to have taken place in Spanish waters.
However, the British-claimed overseas territory rejected the claim on Friday, saying that Gibraltar had acted independently.
Gibraltar
s position comes as a British Foreign Office spokesman had welcomed the move on Thursday, describing it as a
firm action by the Gibraltarian authorities, acting to enforce the EU Syria Sanctions regime.
US National Security Advisor John Bolton
an ardent hawk behind the White House
s highly hostile Iran policy
has also praised the measure.
Maritime Piracy
Iran has condemned the move as
maritime piracy
and summoned Britain
s ambassador in protest. It has vowed to employ all its political and legal capacities to secure the release of the vessel and uphold its rights.
On Friday, Secretary of Iran
s Expediency Council Mohsen Rezaei called for the reciprocal seizure of a British oil tanker in case London refuses to release the vessel.
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/07/05/600237/Gibraltar-Iran-Tanker
Note: 2 parts to this 1) Cut off fuel supply to Syria’s war effort 2) Push Iran to create premise for war. Who benefits???
2019-07-05T17:11:22Z