FOUR Filipino seafarers were aboard a ship that was seized by Iranian authorities while traversing the Strait of Hormuz, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said yesterday.
Iran’s state news agency IRNA on Saturday said its Revolutionary Guards had seized the MSC Aries vessel it said was “linked to Israel” and it was being transferred to Iran’s territorial waters.
A Guards navy special forces helicopter boarded the Portuguese flagged vessel and seized it, IRNA added.
It is the second incident of a vessel seizure with Filipino seafarers aboard. Last November, the commercial ship Galaxy Leader was seized by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the southern Red Sea. There were 17 Filipino seafarers aboard the ship at the time of the incident. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has said negotiations are ongoing for the release of the 17 Filipinos.
The DMW said the vessel was seized while en route from the United Arab Emirates to India.
It also said it is coordinating with the manning agency of the seafarers, ship manager and operator, and the Department of Foreign Affairs “to ensure their safety and well-being, as well as to work on the release of our dear seafarers.”
It said it has assured the families of the four Filipinos of “full government support and assistance.”
Bishop Ruperto Santos, vice chairman of the Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, asked the faithful to pray for the seamen.
“We trust our government officials for necessary diplomatic assistance and assurance to exhaust all means to bring them safely home,” he also said.
Since November last year, Yemen’s Houthi rebels have attacked over 40 commercial ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. The attacks were in response to the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza Strip that started in October last year when the Hamas rebels attacked Israel. Late Saturday, Iran launched explosive drones and fired missiles at Israel in its first direct attack on Israeli territory. — With Reuters
