Seized Iranian ship likely carrying equipment deemed dual-use by US, sources say
By Jonathan Saul
LONDON, April 20 (Reuters) – The Iranian-flagged container ship Touska, which was boarded and seized by U.S. forces on Sunday, was likely carried by Washington with dual-use items that could be used by the military, maritime security sources said on Monday.
The small container ship, part of the US-sanctioned Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) group, was boarded off Iran’s Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman on Sunday and last reported its location at 1308 GMT, according to ship tracking data on the Marine Traffic platform.
US Central Command said the Touska’s crew failed to comply with repeated warnings over a six-hour period and the ship violated the US blockade.
Security sources, who wished to remain anonymous, said their initial assessment was that the ship would likely carry dual-use items after a voyage from Asia.
One of the sources said the ship was carrying items previously thought to be dual-use.
Sources did not go into details about the items. U.S. Central Command also listed metals, pipes and electronic components among other goods that could have both military and industrial uses and could be seized.
Iran’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Iran’s military said the ship came from China and accused the United States of “armed piracy,” state media reported on Monday. They said they were prepared to confront US forces for “blatant aggression” but were constrained by the presence of crew members’ families on board.
Washington imposed sanctions on IRISL in late 2019, describing it as the “preferred shipping lane for Iranian nuclear proliferators and purchasing agents,” and these sanctions include the transportation of items intended for Iran’s ballistic missile program.
One of the sources said that Touska’s crew included an Iranian captain and Iranian crew, but it was not clear whether all of the crew were Iranian citizens.
Two other sources added that IRISL ships are under the control of the Revolutionary Guard and are crewed mostly by Iranians, with Pakistani sailors sometimes also used.
The ship was detected in the Chinese port of Taicang, north of Shanghai, on March 25 and arrived in the southern Chinese port of Gaolan on March 29-30, according to satellite analysis by data analytics experts SynMax.
According to SynMax analysis, the ship loaded containers on board at Gaolan and then stopped around the Klang Port anchorage in Malaysia on April 11-12 to load more containers.
The ship was full of containers when it reached the Gulf of Oman on Sunday.
China expressed concern about the “forced intervention” by the United States on the Iranian-flagged cargo ship and called on relevant parties to responsibly comply with the ceasefire agreement, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said on Monday.
US President Donald Trump said in a post on the Truth Social platform on Sunday that the Touska was under US sanctions due to its “previous history of illegal activity”, adding that US forces “saw what was on the ship”.
The U.S. military has expanded its shipping blockade of Iran to include cargoes considered contraband, and any ships suspected of attempting to reach Iranian territory “shall be subject to the warfighter’s right to visit and search,” the U.S. navy said in an advisory issued Thursday.
The contraband included weapons and ammunition.
(Reporting by Jonathan Saul; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
