A North Korean-flagged tanker, the Morning Glory, is seen docked at the Sidra export terminal in Ras Lanuf in this March 8, 2014, file photo. (REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori/Files)
London and Cairo, Asharq Al-Awsat—The US Navy on Saturday handed over custody of a renegade oil tanker that escaped Libyan territorial waters with a cargo of crude oil illegally loaded by a rebel-held terminal, according to Libyan state news agency LANA.
With the tanker and its crew now in Libyan custody, the government is making plans to prosecute the ship’s 21-member crew and owners, as well as three Libyans who hijacked the ship, according to well-informed Libyan sources who spoke with Asharq Al-Awsat.
That ship, the North Korea-flagged Morning Glory, was loaded with its cargo on March 11 at Sidra, a port currently controlled by a rebel group calling for greater autonomy for the eastern Cyrenaica region, as well as a greater share of oil revenues. The tanker’s escape from Libyan waters prompted a political crisis in the post-revolution country that saw the ouster of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan before the tanker was retaken by a US Navy destroyer off Cyprus. North Korea has since disavowed the ship over the incident.
The Libyan sources, who asked to remain anonymous, said the Libyan government’s position is that the tanker should be detained for an indefinite period, its owners fined about 36 million US dollars, equivalent of the value of the oil it smuggled from Sidra, and its crew and hijackers be prosecuted on Libyan soil and under Libyan law. They added that these matters would be handled by the Libyan Attorney-General’s Office.
The Libyan sources said the Morning Glory would be taken initially to the port of Zawiya, from where it was to be transferred to detention at the Kharmas Naval Base 50 miles (80 kilometers) east of Tripoli.
The return of the Morning Glory to Libya comes at a precarious time for the country. Libyan Army troops clashed with gunmen loyal to the same leader as those who allowed the tanker to be loaded with oil at Sidra in Ajdabiya on Saturday. Sixteen people have been reported wounded in Saturday’s fighting.
Interim Prime Minister Abdullah Al-Thani has called for continued cooperation and assistance from the international community to assist in eradicating terrorism from Libya, after the UN Security Council adopted a resolution on March 19 banning the illegal export of crude oil from Libya and permitting the international community to board and inspect any ships suspected of carrying such cargo.
Khalid Mahmoud contributed reporting from Cairo