EU warships stop tanker suspected of breaking Libya embargo by Staff Writers Rome (AFP) Sept 10, 2020 German and Italian warships intercepted an oil tanker Thursday carrying a load of jet fuel to Libya in a suspected breach of an arms embargo against the north African country. A security team boarded the Marshall Islands-flagged Royal Diamond 7 in international waters about 150 kilometres (93 miles) north of the Libyan city of Derna, the European Union's military operation in the Mediterranean said. The ship, which had earlier left Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, was heading for Benghazi "carrying a load of jet fuel likely to be used for military purposes," Operation Irini said in a statement. "This fuel is considered 'military material' by the UN," it added, saying the Royal Diamond 7 was denied access to Libyan territorial waters. It has been "diverted to a European Union port for further investigation," the mission said. Operation Irini was set up to halt the flow of arms into Libya, where the UN-recognised and Turkish-backed Government of National Accord has faced a major uprising by the forces of Russian-backed strongman Khalifa Haftar. Since starting on May 4, patrols in the central Mediterranean have hailed 650 vessels and made 12 searches on board merchant boats, the mission said. It has also detected some 80 suspected flights "possibly carrying military-related cargos back-and-forth to Libya," it said.
Turkey begins military exercises in north Cyprus Istanbul (AFP) Sept 6, 2020 Turkey's armed forces on Sunday began annual exercises in the breakaway republic of northern Cyprus - an entity recognised only by Ankara - as tensions brewed with Greece in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey's hunt for gas and oil reserves in waters claimed by Greece has put huge strain on the relationship between the two NATO members. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday raised the stakes and warned Greece: "They will either understand the language of politics and diplomacy, or ... read more
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