MV Francop
{{Short description|German-owned merchant cargo ship}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2014}}
| {{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image | Ship image = Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - IDF Boarding the Francop.jpg | Ship caption = IDF soldiers boarding the Francop cargo ship }} {{Infobox ship career | Hide header = | Ship name =*Tavastland (2002–06)
|Ship namesake=*Häme (Tavastland) | Ship owner = Francop Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. (2002-19) | Ship operator = United Feeder Services | Ship registry =*Germany (2002–03)
| Ship route = | Ship ordered = | Ship builder = Sietas, Neuenfelde | Ship original cost = | Ship yard number = 1166 | Ship way number = | Ship laid down = | Ship launched = | Ship completed = August 2003 | Ship christened = | Ship acquired = | Ship maiden voyage = | Ship in service = | Ship out of service = | Ship identification =*{{IMO Number|9277412}}
| Ship fate = | Ship status = In service | Ship notes = }} {{Infobox ship characteristics | Hide header = | Header caption = | Ship class = | Ship tonnage = | Ship displacement = | Ship length = {{convert|137.50|m|ftin|abbr=on}} | Ship beam = {{convert|21.30|m|ftin|abbr=on}} | Ship height = | Ship draught = {{convert|7.47|m|ftin|abbr=on}} | Ship draft = | Ship depth = | Ship decks = | Ship deck clearance = | Ship ramps = | Ship ice class = | Ship sail plan = | Ship power = | Ship propulsion = 1 MaK 9M43 diesel engine, {{convert|8400|kW|hp}} | Ship speed = {{convert|18.5|kn|km/h}} | Ship capacity = | Ship crew = 11 | Ship notes = }} |
The MV Francop is a German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged merchant cargo ship. In November 2009 the Israeli navy boarded the vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, suspecting that it was carrying weapons destined for Hezbollah from the Islamic Republic of Iran in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701. Hundreds of tons of weapons were found on the ship, which was then directed to berth in Israel.
Background
Built by Sietas of Neuenfelde and completed in August 2003, the ship was launched as Tavastland.{{csr|register=MSI|id=9277412|accessdate=6 November 2009}} It measures {{convert|137.50|m|ftin}} long, with a beam of {{convert|21.30|m|ftin}} and a draught of {{convert|7.47|m|ftin}}. Its MaK 9 M 43 diesel engine can reach a speed of {{convert|18.5|kn|km/h}}.{{cite web|url=http://www.poosu.net/2tavastland.html|title=M/S Tavastland|publisher=Poosu|access-date=8 November 2009|archive-date=8 November 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091108052418/http://www.poosu.net/2tavastland.html|url-status=dead}} The ship has sailed under the German, British and Antigua and Barbuda flags and is currently under the flag of Russia.{{cite web |url=http://www.equasis.org/EquasisWeb/restricted/ShipInfo?fs=ShipHistory |title=Ship info: Francop |access-date=4 November 2009 |date=14 April 2009 |publisher=Equasis}} It is currently owned by the Russian company Far Eastern Shipping Co., Vladivostok.{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8341737.stm |title=Israelis 'seize Iran arms ship' |publisher=BBC News |date=4 November 2009 |access-date=4 November 2009}}
Boarding incident
{{Main|Francop Affair}}
On 4 November 2009, in an operation named Operation Four Species,{{Cite web |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126397.html |title=Report: U.S. Stopped Israel from attacking 'Hezbollah arms ship' - Haaretz - Israel News |access-date=6 November 2009 |archive-date=18 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100418190907/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126397.html |url-status=dead }} Israeli navy commandos of Shayetet 13 boarded the ship in the eastern Mediterranean Sea without resistance, acting on intelligence reports which it had received. The ship was about {{convert|160|km|nmi}} off the coast of Israel, near Cyprus. A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the ship was carrying "dozens of shipping containers, carrying numerous weapons, disguised as civilian cargo among hundreds of other containers on board". The IDF also claimed that the weapons originated from Iran and were to be directed to Hezbollah. The navy said that the crew was not aware of the purported smuggling and cooperated with Israeli commandos. After the boarding, the Israeli Navy directed the ship to the Israeli port of Ashdod, where a thorough inspection was held.
According to the IDF, the ship picked up the cargo in Damietta, Egypt; the cargo arrived in Egypt on a ship that sailed from Bandar-Abbas, Iran on 25 October.{{cite news |first=Anshel |last=Pfeffer |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1126069.html |title=Israel seizes ship in Mediterranean carrying more than 3,000 rockets |work=Haaretz |date=4 November 2009 |access-date=4 November 2009}} The ship was then set to sail to Limassol, Cyprus and then Latakia, Syria. The IDF suspects that the cargo was intended for Hezbollah, which fought Israel in the 2006 Lebanon War. Following the war, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 forbade the shipments of arms to Hezbollah.
An Israeli naval official claimed that the amount of weapons found is ten times more than that found during Operation Noah's Ark.{{cite news |first=Hanan |last=Greenberg |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3800306,00.html |title=Navy: 10 times more arms on ship than on Karin-A |publisher=Ynet |date=4 November 2009 |access-date=4 November 2009}} The arms shipment weighed 320 tons and were held in containers marked with Iranian shipping codes.{{cite news |first=Teibel |last=Amy |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h3S0DqyLu9CfgcBASy2XHOGCk0IAD9BPAIG80 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091114201253/http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h3S0DqyLu9CfgcBASy2XHOGCk0IAD9BPAIG80 |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 November 2009 |title=Hezbollah denies link to arms ship |agency=Associated Press |date=5 November 2009 |access-date=5 November 2009}}{{cite news | url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1257455195197&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull | archive-url=https://archive.today/20120708082606/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1257455195197&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull | url-status=dead | archive-date=8 July 2012 | title=The haul: 320 tons of Katyushas, other rockets, shells and bullets | last=Katz | first=Yaakov | date=5 November 2009 | work=The Jerusalem Post | publisher=jpost.com | access-date=6 November 2009 }} The seized weaponry included 9,000 mortar shells, thousands of 107-mm Katyusha rockets, 600 122-mm rockets, and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition. The arms shipment was the largest ever seized by Israeli authorities.
On 5 November 2009, ambassadors and diplomats from 44 countries and military attaches from 27 armies in the world were invited by the IDF and the Foreign Ministry in order for them to be witnesses of the many weapons and accumulation of ammunition that were found on the Francop ship.{{cite news|url=http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/today/09/11/0505.htm |title=Ambassadors, Military Attaches Witness Weapons Seized from Francop |publisher=IDF |date=5 November 2009 |access-date=5 November 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110506234851/http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/today/09/11/0505.htm |archive-date=6 May 2011 }}