Dubai: Every war has its share of stories, bordering on the supernatural. However, never has one been heard about “zombie” ships plying through a combat zone.
Ship-tracking data has revealed that an oil tanker, believed to have been scrapped years ago, crossed the Strait of Hormuz over the last 24-hours. This was the second such “zombie” ship tracked in recent days, News18 reported.
The tanker has been identified as Nabiin It was tracked in the Persian Gulf on Sunday evening and appeared in the Gulf of Oman by Monday morning.
Records searched by Bloomberg News show the Aframax tanker, built in 2002, had been sent to ship breaking yards in Bangladesh five years ago. It is now being suspected that the tanker posing as Nabiin’ is a “zombie” ship that has assumed the identity of a scrapped, legitimate ship for the movement of crude in a clandestine manner.
On Friday, a ship – a Liquefied Natural Gas carrier – identifying itself as the Jamal – crossed the Strait. Nothing wrong wit
h that save for the fact that the original Jamal is recorded to have beached at an Indian demolition yard last year.
The question is how Iran or its vigilant Islamic Republican Guard Corps (IRGC) allowed these tankers to pass, even after saying that movement through the narrow passage would be on a case-to-case basis.
There is belief that these voyages reveal extraordinary steps being taken by shipowners are taking to move cargo through the Strait through which Iran has not allowed free movement since the start of the war on February 28.
The only vessels that have managed to pass are either linked to Iran or have received approval from Tehran. Others have switched off tracking signals to avoid detection.
Tracking data reveals that the vessel posing as Nabiin entered the Persian Gulf hours before the war began, listing Iraq’s Khor Al Zubair as its destination. It remained within the Gulf before exiting on Monday.
However, its exact movements are unclear due to heavy electronic interference affecting tracking signals.
After leaving, the ship indicated it was fully loaded based on draft readings but did not specify a destination.
Dubai-based Muhit Maritime FZE and Sagitta Maritime Co Ltd are listed as the vessel’s manager and owner on the Equasis database. Both firms share the same contact details, but attempts to reach them by phone failed and emails were returned.