No:370/22, Information of the Press Service Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the release of the Azerbaijani members of the crew of the ship that crashed near the city of Gabes, Tunisia
As it is known, on April 16, 2022, the ship “Xelo” sailing under the flag of Equatorial Guinea near the city of Gabes, Republic of Tunisia, crashed due to unfavorable weather conditions. Two of the 7 crew members of the ship - Safarov Fadail Ahmad and Panahli Ali Mirza were citizens of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The ship's crew members have been detained by the law enforcement agencies of the Republic of Tunisia since that day for the purpose of investigating the incident and giving a legal assessment.
In order to provide the necessary consular assistance to our citizens, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan addressed official requests to the relevant state bodies of the Republic of Tunisia, meetings were held in the relevant state bodies of the Republic of Tunisia, and the detained crew members of the ship were visited. Furthermore, the company that owns the ship was contacted and negotiations were held on the issue of providing legal and financial assistance to our citizens in a difficult situation.
On August 10, 2022, a decision was made to release the crew members of the crashed ship at the last court session held at the Gabes City Primary Court. On August 21, 2022, our citizens left the territory of the Republic of Tunisia.
The Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan will continue to take necessary measures to protect the rights and freedoms of its citizens, regardless of where they are, in accordance with the national legislation and international agreements that our country is a party to.