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French prosecutors investigate seized oil tanker suspected of evading sanctions on Russia

PARIS (AP) — French prosecutors said Friday they opened an investigation into an oil tanker intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea by the French navy and suspected of shipping Russian petroleum in violation of sanctions against Moscow.

The Grinch, an oil tanker that came from Murmansk in northwestern Russia and is suspected of being part of the sanctioned Russian shadow fleet, was redirected to an anchorage following Thursday’s operation by the French navy.

Prosecutors in the southern French city of Marseille said Friday they were investigating the ship’s alleged failure to confirm its nationality.

A video provided by the French military show members of the navy boarding the ship from a helicopter.

Russia is believed to be using what has been described as a “shadow fleet” of over 400 ships to evade sanctions over its war on Ukraine. France and other countries have vowed to crack down.

The fleet is a compilation of aging vessels and tankers owned by nontransparent entities with addresses in non-sanctioning countries, and sailing under flags from such countries.

Last September, French naval forces boarded another oil tanker off the French Atlantic coast that Macron also linked to the shadow fleet. Putin denounced that interception as an act of piracy.

The tanker’s captain will go on trial in February over the crew’s alleged refusal to cooperate, according to French judicial authorities.

Telegram’s billionaire founder Pavel Durov has faced legal woes before — in Russia and France

Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder and CEO of the Telegram messaging app, has repeatedly run into trouble with both the Kremlin and Western officials as he cast himself as a champion of free speech. On Wednesday, Russia's Federal Security Service, or FSB, accused him of aiding what it called terrorist activities. It also said it was adding Durov’s name to international wanted lists. The Russian-born Durov, 41, responded to the charges by posting an image of himself raising a middle finger on Telegram's official account on X. He has denounced previous Kremlin attempts to restrict Telegram as an attack on freedom of expression. The case marks an escalation of the Kremlin’s efforts to tighten control over the internet and digital communications as it prepares for parliamentary elections in September amid rising public fatigue with the 4-year-old war in Ukraine and its growing economic fallout.
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