Iranian oil tanker pursued by US says it is going to Turkey

A view of the Grace 1 supertanker is seen through the sea fog, in the British territory of Gibraltar, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019, seized last month in a British Royal Navy operation off Gibraltar. The United States moved on Thursday to halt the release of the Iranian supertanker Grace 1, detained in Gibraltar for breaching EU sanctions on oil shipments to Syria, thwarting efforts by authorities in London and the British overseas territory to defuse tensions with Tehran. (AP Photo/Marcos Moreno)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — An Iranian-flagged oil tanker pursued by the U.S. amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington now lists its destination as a port in Turkey.

The crew of the Adrian Darya 1, formerly known as the Grace 1, changed its listed destination in its Automatic Identification System to Mesrin, Turkey, early Saturday.

However, mariners can input any destination into the AIS, so Turkey may not be its true destination.

The ship-tracking website MarineTraffic.com showed the Adrian Darya’s position as just south of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea.

The Adrian Darya was held for weeks off Gibraltar after being seized by authorities there on suspicion of violating EU sanctions on Syria.

The U.S. has a warrant in federal court to seize the ship and has been warning nations not to accept it.

The Associated Press