On November 7, Spanish newspaper “El Pais” reported that the Government of Spain had denied access to its ports to two vessels suspected of transporting weapons to Israel.
According to research compiled by the pro-Palestine organization Palestinian Youth Movement, the Maersk Denver was reportedly carrying United States-supplied military cargo to the port of Algeciras, in southern Spain.
There, some of the Maersk Denver’s cargo was loaded up on another vessel, the Nysted Maersk, which would then depart for Haifa, in Israel. Both the Maersk Denver and the Nysted Maersk are operated by Danish shipping multinational Maersk.
In the night of November 8, the Maersk Denver was able to dock in Morocco instead, in spite of calls from the pro-Palestine Boycott-Divest-Sanction (BDS) movement to deny it access to the Tanger Med port.
This happened less than a week after Morocco signed a letter to the United Nations Secretary General, calling for "immediate steps to halt the provision of arms, munitions, and related equipment to Israel, the occupying power."
Speaking to Moroccan news site “Assahifa,” anonymous sources at the Tanger Med port denied that the Maersk Denver was carrying weapons destined for the Israeli military, claiming it was “misinformation.”
Misbar looked at the claims made by the anonymous sources at the port, to determine their credibility.
Misbar also tracked the Nysted Maersk using satellite imagery and vessel tracking data, to confirm whether the ship was able to load goods from the Moroccan port.
We were able to confirm that, indeed, Moroccan authorities had knowingly allowed U.S.-supplied military goods to transit through its port on their way to Israel.
Marko Mihajić, head of communications at Maersk told Misbar that “the cargo questioned by the Spanish authorities has been carried on behalf of the US government as a part of the US-Israel security cooperation program.”
Since 7 October 2023, the U.S. has provided some $17.9 billion of military aid to Israel as part of this program.
Misbar also reached out to the authorities at Tanger Med port for comment. We did not receive a reply at the time of publication.
Dubious Anonymous Sources
Misbar found multiple inaccuracies in the claims made to “Assahifa” by its anonymous sources.
The sources claimed that only military ships were allowed to transport arms or hazardous materials under international maritime law; the Maersk Denver, being a civilian ship, would therefore not be allowed to do so.
This is inaccurate. The American Maritime Security Program, of which Maersk is the largest participant, subsidizes the operation of sixty civilian ships to be made available to the U.S. Department of Defense, which can be used for the transport of military goods. Maersk Denver is one of these vessels.
Additionally, the anonymous sources told “Assahifa” that “Spain was never part of the [Maersk Denver]’s route.”
This is also not correct: when the Maerk Denver departed the U.S. on October 31, it had declared that its destination was the port of Algeciras in southern Spain. It did not change its destination to Morocco until the afternoon of November 8, according to vessel tracking data.
This was confirmed to Misbar by Maersk, who told us that the company had provided Spanish authorities “all required cargo information well in advance, following the established procedure, and received no inquiries or concerns from the authorities about any cargo items.”
Mr. Mihajić, the Maersk’s spokesperson, added: “To gain clarity for future operations, we have consulted the Spanish authorities to understand why entry was denied for cargo no different than previous shipments that have routinely been transshipped through this port without incident.”
Loading and Delivery of Goods to Israel
To confirm its role in the transfer of military goods, Misbar tracked the itinerary of the Nysted Maersk ship from November 7 until its arrival in Israel on November 16.
According to Maersk, the Nysted Maersk was diverted to Lisbon, in Portugal, after the Spanish authorities had “changed their position and criteria for handling military related cargo going to or from Israel.”
Vessel tracking information shows that the Nysted Maersk was anchored off the coast of Spain for more than 26 hours before departing to Portugal in the evening of November 8.
Misbar was also able to pinpoint its location off the coast of Portugal on the morning of November 9, using satellite imagery. We also obtained a satellite image of the ship as it was arriving at the Tanger Med port on November 11.
Misbar tracked down the vessel, this time as it was heading towards Haifa, in Israel, on the morning of November 15. The satellite image, taken off the coast of Crete, in Greece, shows that the ship was carrying a much larger cargo compared to when it arrived in Morocco.
The satellite imagery suggests that goods were hauled onto the Nysted Maersk in Morocco, before departing for Israel. Misbar cannot determine at this time the nature of the goods that were loaded on the vessel.
Mr. Mihajic, for his part, affirms that the cargo is legal: “The cargo in scope fully complies with national and international laws and regulations. It does not include any military weapons or ammunition.”
This has not stopped the Moroccan branch of the BDS movement to insist on the need to boycott the servicing of Maersk’s ships headed to Israel.
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