Iran claims a foreign ship got stuck in Strait of Hormuz. But it is tied to Tehran

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian state television reported this week that a foreign person Ship stuck in the Strait of Hormuz after ignoring instructions to use the route set by the Islamic Republic’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

But the ship is tied Iranian – and it seems throat for months.

Based on its shape, reported location and other details, the ship is identified as the container ship Arista, which reportedly flies a false flag bound for the island nation of Comoros. That ship was known as the Panama-flagged Gauja last year, and the US Treasury placed it under sanctions targeting a network that “generated tens of billions of dollars in profits” for Iran’s ruling elite.

Here’s a closer look.

CLAIMS

Iranian state television on Wednesday broadcast on-screen warnings about a foreign ship that got stuck, ignoring commands from the Guard navy.

In the episode that also included images of the grounded ship, a state television news anchor said, “A foreign container ship ran aground in the Strait of Hormuz because it chose a route other than the route determined by Iranian orders.” he said. “This comes at a time when the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has constantly warned that any entry or exit from routes outside the ‘Authority Route’ in the Persian Gulf could lead to irreparable events.”

The report appeared aimed at highlighting Tehran’s claim that it controls the strait, a key corridor for oil and natural gas shipments. Since the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28, Tehran has used its ability to block the waterway as a major source of leverage, disrupting global markets for energy and other critical goods.

FACTS

TankerTrackers.com, which tracks oil shipments at sea, was one of the first expert sources to identify the ship as Arista. Images taken by an Armenian news source He matches the ship in state television footage with the Arista, pointing out the colors of the containers on its deck and the ship’s paint scheme. Iranian state television did not broadcast a close-up of the ship’s name or registration number. In one fell swoop, the name of the ship was blurred.

Marine tracking data shows Arista has been stuck north of Hormuz Island in Iranian territorial waters since mid-March. Tracking data shows the ship became stuck while traveling between Hormuz and Asaluyeh, another Iranian port.

Iranian state television and Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press on Thursday.

on July 30 US Treasury tied up Arista – formerly under the name Gauja – to a massive oil smuggling ring led by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani and a top US security adviser. Late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Senior Shamkhani killed In an air strike with Khamenei at the beginning of the war.

The Treasury Department alleged that the smuggling ring moved sanctioned Iranian and Russian oil and other goods to buyers around the world.

“The Shamkhani family’s shipping empire demonstrates how Iranian regime elites use their positions to amass massive wealth and finance the regime’s dangerous behavior,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement at the time.

After sanctions were imposed, Gauja changed its name to Arista and began flying a Comorian flag; shipping data indicates a “false” flag for the ship; this flag was used to hide the origin of the ship. Ships subject to sanctions in Iran’s so-called shadow fleet frequently use this practice.

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You can find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.