Twenty-two crew members of an Iranian container ship seized by the United States are being sent to Pakistan, and from there home to Iran. Islamabad confirmed the arrangement on Monday.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry called the move a “confidence-building measure” backed by both sides. A statement said the crew would then be returned to Iran.
The ship is the Iranian-flagged Touska, part of the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a company under U.S. sanctions. American forces seized it last month near Iran’s Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman. U.S. Central Command said the crew had refused to comply with six hours of repeated warnings that the ship was breaching a U.S. blockade.
Tehran condemned the seizure at the time as “unlawful” and a violation of international maritime statutes.
The ship will follow its crew. Pakistan said it will return the Touska to Iran once necessary repairs have been made.
Islamabad has acted as a go-between since shortly after the U.S. began striking Iran in late February. Efforts to start peace talks have so far produced few results.
Sources
- US transfers crew of seized Iranian ship to Pakistan
- Pakistan Facilitates Evacuation of Iranian Ship Crew Amid US-Iran Tensions | May 2026 – News and Statistics – IndexBox
