In Gibraltar today, a tanker has been stopped because of suspected illegal oil supplies to Syria. The ship „Grace 1“ had been stopped early in the morning by the police and the customs authorities of the British territory at the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula, said Gibraltar’s Prime Minister Fabian Picardo. The British Navy also provided support.
The ship had apparently loaded crude oil, which should be delivered to the civil war, bypassing EU sanctions against Syria. „We have reason to believe that ‚Grace 1‘ wanted to deliver its crude oil to the Banjas refinery in Syria,“ said Picardo. The operating company of the refinery was subject to EU sanctions against Syria.
The „Grace 1“ drives according to the industry service „Lloyd’s List“ under the flag of Panama. She loaded Iranian oil. According to Picardo, the ship and cargo were confiscated. EU sanctions against Syria have existed since the end of 2011. They include, among other things, an oil embargo.
