The two container ships seized by Iranians Forces in the Strait of Hormuz have been moved along the main waterway to the port of Bandar Abbas, a report said Thursday.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards alleged on Wednesday that the ships, identified as the MSC Francesca and the Epaminondas, operated without proper authorization and had tampered with navigation systems, allegations that could not be independently verified.
“About twenty Iranians armed to the teeth stormed the ship. Sailors are under the control of the Iranians, their movements on the ship are restricted, but the Iranians treat them well,” said a relative of a prisoner on board one of the ships. told Reuters Thursday in connection with one of the attacks.
The news channel quoted sources as saying that both ships – operated by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) – were being taken towards Bandar Abbas with a total of 40 crew members on board.
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The Panamanian-flagged MSC Francesca ship is docked in Long Beach, California on April 16, 2025. (Efrain Morales/Reuters)
“The ship is anchored nine nautical miles off the Iranian coast. Negotiations between MSC and Iran are ongoing, our sailors are doing well,” Montenegro’s Maritime Minister Filip Radulovic told state television there.
Before their seizure on Wednesday, the ships reported being under fire near the strait, underscoring increasingly volatile conditions in one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes.
The situation unfolds after US forces recently seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman as it approached Iranian waters on Sunday.
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Soldiers take part in the operation to seize container ships MSC Francesca and Epaminondas in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state television said on April 22, 2026. (IRIB/Handout/Reuters)
That ship, the Touska, remains in U.S. custody as U.S. forces continue to inspect what maritime security sources told Reuters is likely dual-use cargo — materials that could serve both civilian and military purposes — after traveling from Asia.
The US military also continues to enforce a blockade of Iranian ports on Thursday.
The container ship Epaminondas is seen in Naples, Italy on March 12, 2025. (Giovanni Costigliola/Reuters)
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So far, US forces have diverted 33 ships since the start of the blockade against Iran, US Central Command said on Thursday.
