Iran`s ambassador to the UK. Hamid Baeidinejad. has confirmed reports that the Iranian oil tanker `Grace 1.` recently released by Gibraltar. has been moving towards international waters. `We hereby confirm that our tanker has left Gibraltar for international waters after 45 days.` Baeidinejad reported on Twitter.
The shipping data showed that the tanker. renamed `Adrian Darya 1.` set sail from the Gibraltar port just before midnight local time on Sunday. the same day the British overseas territory rejected Washington’s last-minute request to detain the vessel further for a violation of US sanctions. Washington issued a warrant for the tanker’s arrest last week. accusing it of illegally using a US bank to finance the transfer of oil to support the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The then-Panama-flagged tanker was seized by the UK Navy outside Gibraltar in early July for violating the EU`s own sanctions on Iran. The tanker. with some 2.1 million barrels of crude on board. was accused of transporting the cargo to Syria. a claim that Tehran subsequently denied.