Two Greek tankers held by Iran since May have been released.
Greece said the ships’ sailors have also been freed. Tehran's foreign ministry later confirmed the tankers have been released and have left Iranian waters.
Tracking data from MarineTraffic.com showed the tankers departing from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on Wednesday afternoon.
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard seized the ships Delta Poseidon and Prudent Warrior back in May, just days after Athens said it would deliver seized Iranian oil to the US.
At the time Greece said one of the tankers was in international waters, while the second was close to the Iranian coast when it was boarded. Athens said Tehran's behaviour was “tantamount to acts of piracy” and told citizens not to travel to Iran.
Delta Tankers confirmed in a statement that its vessel was released on Wednesday and said the tanker was sailing to Fujairah for inspections before returning to Greece, its original destination.
“This is very good news and we are grateful to all those involved with securing this release. The crew are well and pleased to be on their way after many months,” the company said.
It comes the same day as Iran was accused of a drone attack on an Israeli-linked tanker in the Gulf of Oman.
Two Israeli officials told Reuters Tehran was behind the Wednesday attack on the Pacific Zircon, owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer. Iran pointed the blame back at Israel.
In May, the US condemned the seizure of the Greek tankers and said it was a “threat to maritime security.”
“Iran's continued harassment of vessels and interference with navigational rights and freedoms are a threat to maritime security and the global economy,” said State Department spokesman Ned Price.
— Agencies contributed to this report
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: BorrowMe (BorrowMe.com)
Date started: August 2021
Founder: Nour Sabri
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce / Marketplace
Size: Two employees
Funding stage: Seed investment
Initial investment: $200,000
Investors: Amr Manaa (director, PwC Middle East)
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Types of fraud
Phishing: Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
Smishing: The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
Vishing: The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
SIM swap: Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
Identity theft: Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
Prize scams: Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
* Nada El Sawy
COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
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