Suez Canal: resumption of traffic thanks to a refloating of Ever Given
The Ever Given in the Suez Canal, Egypt, March 29, 2021. VIA REUTERS - HANDOUT
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The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) announced Monday the "
resumption of traffic
" on this major seaway, obstructed for nearly a week by a giant container ship, the Ever Given, refloated.
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Admiral Ossama Rabie, president of the Suez Canal Authority, has proclaimed the resumption of traffic on the canal
" which sees pass around 10% of international maritime trade, announced in the middle of the afternoon the SCA in a statement.
Monday morning at dawn, the ship 400 meters long and more than 220,000 tons, flying the Panamanian flag, had started to move, after the release of its stern, immobilized until then on the west bank of the canal.
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To read also: Suez Canal: a "human error" could be at the origin of the grounding
The maneuvers continued with the aid of several tugs, until the vessel was again briefly stranded across the canal, according to vessel traffic viewing sites and witnesses at the scene.
Shortly after 3:15 p.m. (1:15 p.m. UT), the vessel had finally found itself in the direction of traffic in the middle of the canal, with its stern and bow released.
The refloating of the ship was greeted by numerous honking of the surrounding boats, as the ship began to slowly ascend north of the canal, AFP journalists noted.
Images from local television stations showed the boat moving forward.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi did not wait for the end of the bailout to congratulate himself earlier in the day on a "
successful
"
operation
, the famous canal being an important source of income for the country.
According to the British specialist magazine
Lloyd's List
, the blockage created a traffic jam of 425 ships, which were waiting on Monday to be able to cross this essential route for maritime trade connecting the Red Sea to the Mediterranean.
It will take "about
three and a half days
" to absorb everything, warned Ossama Rabie, president of the Canal Authority (SCA), on the local channel Sadaa al-Balad.
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