29 April 2024 (Lloyd's List) - IRAN’s foreign minister has said the detained boxship MSC Aries (IMO: 9857169) will be released, according to reports.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized the Portugal-flagged, 14,300 teu ship and its 25 crew on April 13 in response to a suspected Israeli attack on

Iran’s consulate in Damascus. Iran said the ship was linked to Israel and was “violating maritime laws”.

Iranian media reported at the weekend that Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told his Portuguese counterpart Paulo Rangel in a telephone call that the ship would be turned over to their ambassadors in Tehran, but did not say when.

MSC said talks were still in progress.

The ship’s seizure was roundly condemned at the International Maritime Organization’s Legal Committee last week, with some 30 countries and observer groups calling on Iran to release it.