U.S. Applies to Seize Iranian Tanker Held in Gibraltar
Source: NY Times
LONDON — The United States has applied to seize the Iranian oil tanker being held at Gibraltar, the government of the British territory revealed on Thursday, just as the authorities appeared to be close to releasing the ship they detained more than a month ago.
The American action is the latest in a series of back-and-forth jabs that the United States and Iran have traded recently, raising fears of escalation into an all-out conflict in the Persian Gulf.
Gibraltar freed the tanker’s Iranian crew from detention on Thursday, local news media reported, the latest sign that officials in the semiautonomous territory, Britain and Iran might be attempting to step back from the confrontation, possibly by agreeing to exchange seized vessels.
British marines and Gibraltar port officials seized the Iranian ship, Grace 1, on July 4, charging that it was carrying oil to Syria in violation of a European Union embargo. Iran quickly retaliated by detaining a British-flagged tanker, the Stena Impero, in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow entryway to the Persian Gulf.
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Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/15/world/europe/iran-gibraltar-tanker.html
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