Iran frees 9 Indian sailors, 21 more held
Nine crew members have been released and they will be on their way to India soon.
New Delhi: Iran on Friday released nine of the 12 Indian sailors who were on board a Panama-flagged vessel MT Riah that was seized by the Iranian Coast Guard on July 13. Also, 18 other Indian civilian sailors detained on board another vessel, the UK-flagged Stena Impero, on waters off the Iranian coast, are yet to be freed though the Iranians had on Thursday granted India consular access to those 18 Indians as well.
On the detention of Indian crew on MT Riah, MEA spokesman Raveesh Kumar said: “MT Riah was detained along with 12 Indian crew members by the Iranian Coast Guard on July 13. Nine crew members have been freed, and they will be on their way to India soon. Our mission in Iran has requested the authorities to release the other crew members.”
On the 18 Indians on board the United Kingdom-flagged vessel, the MEA had Thursday confirmed that the Indian embassy (in Tehran) had “availed consular access today evening” and that “all 18 Indian crew members on board are safe”.