Philippines Affirms Iran frees Filipino Crew of Seized Oil Tanker

The Greek-owned St. Nikolas oil tanker seized by Iran
The Greek-owned St. Nikolas oil tanker seized by Iran
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Philippines Affirms Iran frees Filipino Crew of Seized Oil Tanker

The Greek-owned St. Nikolas oil tanker seized by Iran
The Greek-owned St. Nikolas oil tanker seized by Iran

The Filipino government said on Wednesday that all crew members of the oil tanker that was seized in the Gulf of Oman in January, have returned to the country.

This came while the government seeks to secure the release of other Filipino seafarers held hostage by the Iran-backed Houthis in the Red Sea.

On January 11, Iran’s navy had seized the Greek-owned St. Nikolas off the coast of Oman. It was carrying 18 Filipino crew members and one Greek, against the backdrop of tension between Iran and its arch enemy, the United States.

In Manila, Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said the Greek crew member was released the following week.

Tehran began freeing the Filipino crew in batches at the end of January after a replacement crew was hired from Russia and other countries.

De Vega said the last of the Filipino crew returned to Manila last week.

“They were not hostages... but they were not allowed to leave without replacements,” de Vega said of the Filipino crew.

The Marshall Islands-flagged ship was carrying 145,000 tons of oil from Iraq and heading to Türkiye when it was seized. It has been anchored in the vicinity of the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas.

Iran's state media said the seizure was in retaliation to the “theft” of Iranian oil by the United States from the same tanker, at the time named the Suez Rajan.

-Seamen Captured by Houthis

Manila is still seeking the release of 17 Filipinos taken hostage by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis in November after the rebels seized their ship in the Red Sea.

In a separate incident, two Filipino crew members were killed and three others injured in a Houthi missile attack on their ship in the Gulf of Aden on March 6.

The Houthis began attacking ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea last November, a campaign they say is intended to signal solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

De Vega said Manila was “encouraged by the developments such as the UN resolution calling on a ceasefire in Gaza.”

“Hopefully there will be peace in the Middle East and the Houthis will release them (Filipino seamen),” he said.

-Suez Rajan Saga

Attention began focusing on the Suez Rajan in February 2022, when the group United Against Nuclear Iran said it suspected the tanker carried oil from Iran's Khargh Island, its main oil distribution terminal in the Arabian Gulf. Satellite photos and shipping data analyzed at the time supported the allegation.

For months, the ship sat in the South China Sea off the northeast coast of Singapore before suddenly sailing for the Texas coast without explanation.

In September, Empire Navigation pleaded guilty to smuggling sanctioned Iranian crude oil and agreed to pay a $2.4 million fine over a case involving the tanker.

The vessel discharged its cargo to another tanker in August, which released its oil in Houston as part of a Justice Department order.

It was sentenced to three years of corporate probation.

The US Treasury has said Iran’s oil smuggling revenue supports the Quds Force, the expeditionary unit of the Revolutionary Guard that operates across the Mideast.

In the meantime, Iran has seized two tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, including the Advantage Sweet, Suezmax crude tanker that had been chartered by US firm Chevron.

-US Crude Oil Seized by Iran

On March 6, the semi-official Fars news agency reported Iran will unload about $50 million worth of crude from the Advantage Sweet, a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker seized last year.

The unloading of the cargo follows a court order by Iran's judiciary which stated the move is in retaliation to US sanctions preventing the sale of critical medicine for Iranian victims of a rare skin disease.

The United States insists that medicines and humanitarian goods are exempt from sanctions.



Israeli Finance Minister Says Banks Should Not Obey EU Sanctions on Settlers

20 July 2022, Israel, Barkan: Right-wing settlers march to build a settlement in the West Bank near Barkan. (dpa)
20 July 2022, Israel, Barkan: Right-wing settlers march to build a settlement in the West Bank near Barkan. (dpa)
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Israeli Finance Minister Says Banks Should Not Obey EU Sanctions on Settlers

20 July 2022, Israel, Barkan: Right-wing settlers march to build a settlement in the West Bank near Barkan. (dpa)
20 July 2022, Israel, Barkan: Right-wing settlers march to build a settlement in the West Bank near Barkan. (dpa)

Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich on Thursday condemned the country's banks that have refused to provide services to Israeli settlers sanctioned by the European Union and warned they may have to pay compensation to them.

The EU last year imposed sanctions on five Israeli settlers for violence against Palestinians and Smotrich said there were reports of sanctions being considered against other settlers.

But in a letter to the banking supervisor, he said Israeli banks should not follow a "zero risk" policy since it leads to the abandonment of Israeli clients "under the guise of compliance with foreign sanctions."

In a statement quoting his letter to the regulator, Smotrich called on banks to use their legal, economic, and international strength to fight "unjust sanctions", Reuters reported.

"The banks’ enormous profits enable them to take measured risks on behalf of their clients — especially when it comes to a national moral injustice," Smotrich, who leads the far-right Religious Zionism party, said.

Should banks continue to comply with sanctions and harm clients, Smotrich said he intended to promote immediate legislation that would require banks to pay substantial compensation to affected customers.

He also intends to require the Bank of Israel itself to offer banking services to citizens targeted by sanctions.

Responding to the letter, the Bank of Israel said that while banks must comply with international sanctions to avoid an array of risks, a draft directive it published on Thursday aimed to ensure appropriate banking services were available for the affected customers.

"Circumventing foreign sanctions regimes through the Israeli banking system exposes banking corporations to multiple risks, including compliance risks, anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing risks, legal risks, and reputational risks," the central bank said.

But it said it has taken steps to comply with sanctions "without banks resorting to blanket refusals to serve such customers."

While the sanctions in question concern Israeli settlers, the EU is reviewing its broad pact governing its political and economic ties with Israel in the face of mounting international pressure on Israel amid complaints about the lack of humanitarian aid reaching Gaza in the wake of the war triggered by Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack.