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Greenpeace activists from Argentina, Turkey, the US and the UK have boarded the 'White Marlin' in the Atlantic Ocean with a banner bearing the message: “Stop Drilling. Start Paying” on Jan 31, 2023, at 8 a.m.. Fur Greenpeace International activists boarded the vessel from three boats launched from Greenpeace’s 'Arctic Sunrise' and used ropes to climb onto the deck north of the Canary Islands in a protest against the climate devastation around the world caused by Shell and the wider fossil fuel industry, without paying a penny towards loss and damage. The four activists Carlos Marcelo Bariggi Amara, from Argentina; Yakup Çetinkaya, from Turkey; Imogen Michel from the UK and Usnea Granger from the US were occupying a Shell oil and gas platform. Two other activists, Yeb Saño from the Philippines, and Waya Pesik Maweru from Indonesia attempted to join them but did not manage to board. The platform is a key piece of production equipment that will enable Shell to unlock eight new wells in the Penguins North Sea oil and gas field. The protestors are carrying enough supplies to occupy the platform for days. Photos: https://media.greenpeace.org/collection/27MZIFJLPHQ6K?_ga=2.110994245.1324949670.1675188582-214359352.1675188582

The 'Pesorsa Dos' has been detained off the Irish south-west coast, on Jan 21, 2023, by the patrol ship 'LE George Bernard Shaw', but it took several days to haul its gear before it could be escorted into Castletownbere, County Cork, on Jan 26. Also the fishing vessel?s boarding ladder broke when the Naval Service patrol crew was trying to gain access to the vessel. The ship had left the port of La Caruna on Jan 2, had shot gill nets and was fishing in deep water for monkfish. The regulations governing the use of such nets states that they can be left in the water for no more than 72 hours and must be hauled in within that time limit.

A second vessel of interest's been identified in a drug smuggling operation that saw around 91 kg of cocaine make its way to New Zealand. A 32-year-old Australian man was arrested in Dunedin after allegedly trying to import the class-A drug. The Victorian resident allegedly attempted to scuba dive to retrieve the drugs from a hidden compartment inside the hull of the 'Spirit of Auckland'. While the arrest occurred in September 2022, on Jan 30 the Australian Federal Police made an appeal for sightings of an open-cab boat in Melbourne, which it believes is connected to the operation. The boat was seen in the vicinity of the 'Spirit of AucklandÄ in Melbourne, as it made its way to New Zealand. Officials are looking into whether the boat was used as reconnaissance to keep an eye out for law enforcement as the vessel passed through Australian waters. The Australian national is due to face court in New Zealand on March 15.

The 'Orion V' was intercepted by teams of the Spanish Law Enforcement agencies about 60 nautical miles southwest of the Canary Islands on Jan 25, 2023, and taken to Las Palmas, being suspected for drug trafficking. Upon the arrival at Las Palmas on Jan 26 at 9.15 a.m. UTC,, the ship was searched, and 4.5 tons of cocaine were found. The ship with a cargo of 1750 cattle and 28 crew members from Tansania, Syria, Kenya, Ecuador, Panama, Columbia, the Dominicans and Nicaragua was en route from Cartagena to the Lebanon. All crew members were arrested. The Canary islands authorities refused to disembark the cattle, and on Jan 28 at 1 p.m. the ship left Las Palmas, bound for Arzve, Algeria, with an ETA as of Feb 2. It was manned by part of the initial crew which had been released before. Report with photo: https://www.semana.com/nacion/articulo/semana-revela-detalles-desconocidos-del-buque-que-partio-de-colombia-con-1750-vacas-y-cayo-con-45-toneladas-de-cocaina-en-espana/202308/

The 'Ocean Viking' arrived in the port of Carrara on Jan 29 with 95 migrants on board. The migrants had been brought to safety in the central Mediterranean in the past few days. On Jan 28, the 'Geo Barents' arrived in La Spezia with 237 boat people on board. The ship is threatened with confiscation and a fine of 10,000 Euros because the aid organization did not comply with the code of conduct for rescue ships recently issued by the Italian government. The prefect must now decide on this.