Syria has become a no-go zone for international merchant shipping following the ousting of the Assad family from power.
Ships are giving the Middle Eastern nation a wide berth in the wake of the uprising that saw Bashar al-Assad fly to Russia over the weekend, ending more than 50 years of rule from his family.
VesselFinder, an AIS vessel tracking website, currently shows no commercial ships moored at any Syrian ports, while a spokesperson for MarineTraffic, another vessel tracking service said today: “According to AIS data there are no commercial vessels now in Syria.”
Analysts at TankerTrackers.com noted the Iranian suezmax Lotus make a U-turn in the Gulf of Suez yesterday. The ship was due to deliver 750,000 barrels of Iranian crude to Syria but is now returning to Iran with TankerTrackers.com warning Syria now risks suffering from fuel shortages.
Data from Oceanbolt shows Russia was the largest source of seaborne cargoes to Syria in the year to date, followed by Iran, Turkey, and Egypt.
Latakia, Banias and Tartous are Syria’s three largest ports, the latter of which saw the Russian navy make a swift exit over the weekend having used it as its only Mediterranean repair and replenishment point for decades.