Tanker Breaks Down in Suez Canal, but Traffic Not Disrupted

17 November 2019, Egypt, Ismailia: A container ship sails through the Suez Canal. (dpa)
17 November 2019, Egypt, Ismailia: A container ship sails through the Suez Canal. (dpa)
TT
20

Tanker Breaks Down in Suez Canal, but Traffic Not Disrupted

17 November 2019, Egypt, Ismailia: A container ship sails through the Suez Canal. (dpa)
17 November 2019, Egypt, Ismailia: A container ship sails through the Suez Canal. (dpa)

A tanker transporting liquefied natural gas broke down in the Suez Canal on Wednesday but traffic in the global waterway was unaffected, a canal spokesperson said.

The Bahamas-flagged Grace Emilia suffered a malfunction of its rudder and tugboats pulled it to the side of the canal to allow other vessels to pass, said George Safwat, a spokesperson for Egypt's Suez Canal Authority.

He told The Associated Press that the north-bound tanker stopped working in the southern part of the canal, where a two-lane waterway enables ships to transit.

Canal services provider Leth Agencies reported the incident in a Twitter post, saying vessels “can pass in both directions.”

Safwat, the spokesperson, said 68 vessels transited the canal on Wednesday. He said the canal tugs were towing the Grace Emilia to Little Bitter Lake to repair the malfunction.

Built in 2021, the Grace Emilia is 297 meters (975 feet) long and 46 meters (151 feet) wide. Its cargo tank capacity is 174,000 cubic meters.

According to VesselFinder, a vessel tracking service provider, the Grace Emilia sails between the port of Dabhol in India and Cove Point in Maryland.

Last month, a cargo ship carrying corn went aground in the canal before it was refloated to allow the resumption of traffic.

In March 2021, the Panama-flagged Ever Given, a colossal container ship, crashed into a bank on a single-lane stretch of the canal, blocking the waterway for six days.

Opened in 1869, the Suez Canal provides a crucial link for oil, natural gas and cargo. About 10% of world trade flows through the canal, a pivotal source of foreign currency to Egypt.

The Suez Canal Authority said 23,851 vessels passed through the waterway last year, compared to 20,649 vessels in 2021. The canal’s annual revenues reached $8 billion, the highest in its history.



At Least 15 Killed in Suicide Bombing at Damascus Church

A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
TT
20

At Least 15 Killed in Suicide Bombing at Damascus Church

A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)
A Syrian man reacts inside Mar Elias church where a suicide bomber detonated himself in Dweila in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria, Sunday June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

At least 15 people were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up at the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila neighborhood of Syria's capital Damascus on Sunday, security sources said.

Syria's interior ministry said the suicide bomber was an ISIS member. He entered the church, opened fire and then detonated his explosive vest, the ministry added in a statement.

A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said two men were involved in the attack, including the one who blew himself up.

Syria's state news agency cited the health ministry as putting the preliminary casualty toll at nine dead and 13 injured.

Some local media reported that children were among the casualties.

A livestream from the site by Syria's civil defense, the White Helmets, showed scenes of destruction from within the church, including a bloodied floor and shattered church pews and masonry.

Syrian Information Minister Hamza Mostafa condemned the attack, calling it a terrorist attack.

“This cowardly act goes against the civic values that brings us together,” he said in a post on X. “We will not back down from our commitment to equal citizenship ... and we also affirm the state’s pledge to exert all its efforts to combat criminal organizations and to protect society from all attacks threatening its safety.”