Hijacked Crew of MSC Aries Released by Iran

Iran has freed all crew members of the MSC Aries, a 15,000 TEU container ship that was seized by Iranian special forces last month.

In a conversation with Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian explained that the "seized ship had turned off its transponders in the territorial waters of Iran and jeopardized 'the security of navigation'".

The vessel, which has links to Israel, is currently moored near three other ships that were also commandeered by Iranian special forces.

Additionally, the Galaxy Leader, a car carrier operated by NYK, is still held in Yemeni waters after being captured six months ago by the Houthis.

Meanwhile, off the Horn of Africa, Somali pirates have restarted their ransom operations, taking two ships in recent months.