The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed Tuesday that one of the 18 Filipino seafarers detained aboard the oil tanker ST Nikolas since January has been released.
Undersecretary Eduardo Jose de Vega stated that the individual was freed last Feb. 4. The 17 remaining crew members, however, were still on the vessel.
De Vega said the other Filipinos stayed “out of their free will” because they were being paid double their regular salary. He stressed the need for their replacement by the agency that deployed them.
While recent discussions between the Philippines and Iran offered no concrete information regarding the ship’s release, De Vega acknowledged that the matter rests with Iranian courts.
This development follows the earlier release of a Greek cadet.
Iranian authorities seized the Marshall Islands-flagged ST Nikolas, formerly known as Suez Rajan, in the Gulf of Oman last Jan. 11. The vessel was transporting Iraqi oil to Turkey at the time.
The tanker had previously gained attention in 2023 when the United States confiscated its cargo of over 980,000 barrels of Iranian crude oil as part of sanctions enforcement. Iranian media, citing the Navy, reported the seizure as retaliation for the US action.