Posted on 06/23/2003 7:25:12 AM PDT by Phatheon
UPDATE 1-Greece links seized ship's explosive cargo to Sudan 23 Jun 2003 12:50
(Recasts with shipping minister news conference)
By Brian Williams ATHENS, June 23 (Reuters) - Greece said on Monday a seized ship carrying an "atomic bomb"-sized quantity of explosives was destined for a company with a post office box in Khartoum, Sudan, that did not exist. Casting doubts on the legality of the ship's activities, Greek Shipping Minister George Anomeritis said the vessel did not report its 680-tonne cargo of dynamite when the coast guard stopped it.
"It was sailing in Greek waters and when the coast guard authorities stopped it, it did not report its cargo," he told a news conference.
Police said earlier the ship was carrying ammonia dynamite, an explosive widely used in mining, as well as 8,000 detonators and fuses.
"It should have reported that it was sailing with an atomic bomb cargo," Anomeritis said, referring to the quantity of explosives on board. "And according to the rule it should have reported its cargo 24 hours earlier."
Elite troops stormed the Comoros-flagged Baltic Sky while it sailed in western Greek waters late on Sunday after receiving a tip-off from international intelligence agencies that it was carrying suspicious cargo in its hold.
The Greek coast guard had shadowed the ship for five days.
Bomb experts were examining the cargo and the Baltic Sky's seven crew were under arrest and being questioned by public prosecutors. The crew comprised five Ukrainian nationals, including the captain, and two Azeris.
"The cargo was destined for a company with a post office box in Khartoum (capital of Sudan) that does not exist," Anomeritis said.
The ship was now under strict police guard at the western port of Platiyali near the seaside town of Astakos.
SHIP MOVEMENTS RAISED SUSPICIONS Anomeritis said the ship's cargo with a Khartoum destination was listed on its manifest, but the vessel's movements over the past six weeks added to suspicions about its activities.
"No one would call legal a cargo that is going around the Mediterranean for a month," Anomeritis said.
He said the Baltic Sky left Albania on April 27, stopped at Gabes in Tunisia on May 12 where the explosives were loaded, showed up in Istanbul on May 22 and was sighted in waters off northern Turkey on June 2.
Earlier, a Merchant Marine Ministry official told Reuters the authorities had to "check if the cargo is legal or if it was bound for any terrorism group." The discovery comes amid heightened security after bombings in Saudi Arabia and Morocco, and a terror warning in Kenya. Greece has increased collaboration with international police ahead of the 2004 Athens Olympics and has beefed up patrols off its shores to stem a growing flow of illegal immigrants.
NATO forces have also boarded ships in the Mediterranean over the last few months as part of the U.S-led "war on terror". The Comoros flag is considered a flag of convenience.
The Baltic Sky was owned by a Marshall Islands registered company named Alpha Shipping Inc.
"There was no report of resistance from the crew when we boarded it," second deputy Coast Guard chief George Papachristodoulou told Reuters in a telephone interview. "Special troops, frogmen and our special commandos executed the operation, working on leads from domestic and international intelligence sources that said the ship was suspect," he said.
Sudan, the apparent destination of the cargo, is on a U.S. list of states accused of sponsoring terrorism despite improving relations. It has been at pains to show it has been cracking down on alleged extremists.
Saudi-born militant Osama bin Laden, mastermind of the September 11 attacks on the United States, was based in Sudan from 1991 to 1996 and his al-Qaeda network has had a presence in the country.
Certainly very mysterious!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.