The Strait of Hormuz is closed, both Iran and the USA block navigation. Those who do not respect it will end up as the Iranian TV video shows.
23/04/2026 01:00
A video broadcast in the early hours of Thursday, April 23, 2026, according to Iranian state television, shows gunmen boarding two container ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The detention of one of the ships, the Panamanian-flagged MSC Francesca, was confirmed by the Montenegrin Minister of Maritime Affairs, who said four Montenegrin sailors were on board and that they and the rest of the crew were safe.
The IRGC accused the Liberian-flagged ships MSC Francesca and Epaminondas of operating without the necessary permits and tampering with navigation systems.
State television video footage showed speedboats with Iranian flags approaching the ships at sea. The soldiers walking on board the ship had weapons with them.
Iran’s moves to block the strait, which carries about a fifth of the world’s daily oil and gas supplies, have caused the worst disruption of energy supplies in history. Around 130 vessels used to pass through the strait a day, but this number was reduced to a few ships a day after the outbreak of the Middle East crisis.
After a few weeks, the US also began a blockade of Iranian ships. With peace talks currently on hold, the fate of shipping through this vital artery remains uncertain.
Reuters confirmed the identities of the container ships as the MSC Francesca and the Epaminodas based on their shapes, colors and vessel types, which matched stock images of the vessels. Ship tracking data confirmed the location of the container ships. The coordinates are 26.4865, 56.9274.
The exact date the video was shot could not be independently verified, but no older version of the footage was posted online before April 23, 2026. Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the seizure of the ships on April 22, 2026.
