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MSC Condemns 'Unjustified' Attack on 4,800 teu Containership in Gulf Waters

MSC rejected claims by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard that an attack on its vessel was justified, asserting the carrier maintains strict neutrality in regional hostilities. The Panama-flagged MSC Sariska V sustained two direct hits approximately 40 nautical miles southeast of Umm Qasr, with the second strike igniting a fire in the crew quarters that personnel extinguished. All seafarers remained unharmed throughout the incident. Iran claimed the attack was retaliatory for a US strike on the bulk carrier Lion Star and asserted the vessel's purported American-Israeli ownership, but MSC countered that the company remains wholly Swiss-domiciled and owned by Italian nationals. The 4,800 teu ship had operated MSC's Gulf Shuttle feeder service before becoming stranded beyond the Hormuz Strait. The incident underscores mounting security risks for container lines navigating regional waters and may prompt carriers to reassess established bypass routing protocols.