MV Francop
| 300px M/V Tavastland | |
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: |
Tavastland (2002-08) Francop (since 2008) |
| Owner: | Francop Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. |
| Operator: | United Feeder Services |
| Port of registry: |
22x20px Germany (2002-03) United Kingdom (2003-08)22x20px Antigua and Barbuda (since 2008) |
| Builder: | Sietas, Neuenfelde |
| Yard number: | 1166 |
| Completed: | August 2003 |
| Identification: | IMO number: 9277412[1] MMSI Number 305234000[1] Callsign V2DJ5[1] |
| Status: | In service |
| General characteristics | |
| Length: | 137.50 metres (451 ft 1 in) |
| Beam: | 21.30 metres (69 ft 11 in) |
| Draught: | 7.47 metres (24 ft 6 in) |
| Propulsion: | 1 MaK 9M43 diesel engine, 8,400 kilowatts (11,300 hp) |
| Speed: | 18.5 knots (34.3 km/h) |
| Crew: | 11 |
The MV Francop is a German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged merchant cargo ship. In November 2009 the Israeli navy boarded the vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, suspecting that it was carrying weapons destined for Hezbollah from the Islamic Republic of Iran in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701. Hundreds of tons of weapons were found on the ship, which was then directed to berth in Israel.
Background
Built by Sietas of Neuenfelde as yard number 1166 and completed in August 2003, she was launched as Tavastland.[2] The ship is 137.50 metres (451 ft 1 in) long, with a beam of 21.30 metres (69 ft 11 in) and a draught of 7.47 metres (24 ft 6 in). Her MaK 9 M 43 diesel engine can propel her at a speed of 18.5 knots (34.3 km/h).[3] The ship has sailed under the German and the British flags, and currently flies the flag of Antigua and Barbuda.[4] The ship is currently owned by the German company Francop Schiffahrts GmbH & Co.[4] A Cypriot company, United Feeder Services, operates the vessel.[5]
Boarding incident
On November 4, 2009, in an operation named "Operation Four Species"[6], Israeli navy commandos of Shayetet 13 boarded the ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea without resistance, acting on intelligence reports which it had received.[7] The ship was about 160 kilometres (86 nmi) off the coast of Israel, near Cyprus.[5] A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Force (IDF) said the ship was carrying "dozens of shipping containers, carrying numerous weapons, disguised as civilian cargo among hundreds of other containers on board". The IDF also claimed that the weapons originated from Iran and were to be directed to Hezbollah.[5] The navy said that the crew was not aware of the purported smuggling and cooperated with Israeli commandos.[8] After the boarding, the Israeli navy directed the ship to the Israeli port of Ashdod where a thorough inspection was held.[8]
According to the IDF, the ship picked up the cargo in Damietta, Egypt; the cargo arrived in Egypt on a ship that sailed from Bandar-Abbas, Iran on October 25.[8] The ship was then set to sail to Limassol, Cyprus and then Latakia, Syria.[8] The IDF suspects that the cargo was intended for Hezbollah, which fought Israel in the 2006 Lebanon War. Following the war, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 forbade the shipments of arms to Hezbollah.
An Israeli naval chief claimed that the amount of weapons found is ten times more than that found during Operation Noah's Ark.[9] The arms shipment weighed 320 tons and were held in containers marked with Iranian shipping codes.[7][10] The seized weaponry included 9,000 mortar shells, thousands of 107-mm Katyusha rockets, 600 122-mm rockets, and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition.[10] The arms shipment was the largest ever seized by Israeli authorities.[7]
On November 5, 2009, ambassadors and diplomats from 44 countries and military attaches from 27 armies in the world were invited by the IDF and the Foreign Ministry in order for them to be witnesses of the many weapons and accumulation of ammunition that were found on the Francop ship.[11]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Francop - Type of ship: Cargo Ship - Callsign: V2DJ5". vesseltracker.com. 2009-11-04. http://www.vesseltracker.com/en/Ships/Francop-9277412.html.
- ↑ ""9277412"" (subscription required). Miramar Ship Index. R.B. Haworth. http://www.miramarshipindex.org.nz. Retrieved 6 November 2009.
- ↑ "M/S Tavastland". Poosu. http://www.poosu.net/2tavastland.html. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Ship info: Francop". Equasis. 2009-04-14. http://www.equasis.org/EquasisWeb/restricted/ShipInfo?fs=ShipHistory. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Israelis 'seize Iran arms ship'". BBC News. 2009-11-04. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8341737.stm. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ↑ http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126397.html
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Amy, Teibel (2009-11-05). "Hezbollah denies link to arms ship". Associated Press. Google News. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h3S0DqyLu9CfgcBASy2XHOGCk0IAD9BPAIG80. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Pfeffer, Anshel (2009-11-04). "Israel seizes ship in Mediterranean carrying more than 3,000 rockets". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126069.html. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ↑ Greenberg, Hanan (2009-11-04). "Navy: 10 times more arms on ship than on Karin-A". Ynet. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3800306,00.html. Retrieved 2009-11-04.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Katz, Yaakov (2009-11-05). "The haul: 320 tons of Katyushas, other rockets, shells and bullets". The Jerusalem Post (jpost.com). http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1257455195197&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull. Retrieved 2009-11-06.
- ↑ "Ambassadors, Military Attaches Witness Weapons Seized from Francop". IDF. 2009-11-05. http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/today/09/11/0505.htm. Retrieved 2009-11-05.
