Author | Lightnews

SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 4d

👀

Reposted by SONARROW

KNWLDG MEDIA @knwldgmedia.bsky.social · 8d

THREAD 🇫🇷📱

La France sur X… ou plutôt Russia Today sur X?

Comment un média d'État pourrait se faire passer pour un compte patriote français sur X.

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Reposted by SONARROW

Christiaan Triebert @trbrtc.bsky.social · 15d

When Bashar al-Assad’s regime collapsed in Syria, many of the officials who enabled and enforced his brutal regime disappeared. Our reporting uncovers who they are, what they did and where they fled. nyti.ms/3J1W5Cs

The Vanishing Act: How Assad’s Top Henchmen Fled Syria, and Justice

www.nytimes.com

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

Thanks to OSINT, it’s possible, even within the vast “shadow fleet”, to identify the tankers that play an outsized role in the network.

We’ll continue to analyze each vessel’s patterns to better understand their methods and operations.

🐙

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

The LEO II is believed to have carried out over 30 transfer operations in total since July, making her a true floating gas station.

She now holds a key position in the network circumventing sanctions on Russian oil 🇷🇺.

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

🔸 DUKE II (IMO 9254240)
🔸 MILANO (IMO 9286059)
🔸 ROMA (IMO 9286047)
🔸 EARTH (IMO 9269257)
🔸 CHEM NICHOLAS (IMO 9374416)
🔸 ATLAS STAR (IMO 9376828)
🔸 ELAIA (IMO 9798363)
🔸 CHEM HELEN (IMO 9340116)

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

Since September 20, the LEO II has already carried out eight ship-to-ship transfer operations, totaling 195 hours of activity at sea:

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

Thus, the Russian crude oil 🇷🇺 becomes gradually “diluted” through successive transfers, making its true origin nearly impossible to trace.

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

The LEO II then transfers this oil to other, more discreet tankers, less exposed to scrutiny, which handle the final redistribution.
Each of these vessels often carries out a second or even third transfer before finally leaving the area.

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

Slightly larger than average, the LEO II acts as an intermediary: she receives crude oil via ship-to-ship transfers from Russian ports 🇷🇺 such as Tuapse, Primorsk, and Novorossiysk, carried by sanctioned vessels and other tankers.

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

Yet, the LEO II holds a strategic position off the coast of Cyprus, an area well known for ship-to-ship (STS) transfer operations among vessels of the so-called shadow fleet.

We actually showcased a similar example in a previous thread (FR) 👇

bsky.app/profile/sona...

SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · Sep 27

Un tanker sanctionné pris en flagrant délit de transbordement avec un autre navire au sud de Chypre 🇨🇾.

Vous vous souvenez de la photo partagée par @TiaFarris10 sur X ?

On a mené une enquête OSINT maritime avec Vesselfinder , voici ce que l'on a trouvé 🧵

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

The LEO II (IMO 9243318) is a large-capacity oil tanker (57,100 GT) sailing under the Panamanian flag 🇵🇦.

Neither the vessel nor her Greek manager, Sea Trade Marine SA 🇬🇷, appear on any sanctions lists from the 🇪🇺, 🇺🇸, 🇬🇧, or 🇺🇳.

In short, the LEO II is officially above suspicion.

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SONARROW @sonarrow.bsky.social · 16d

🔎 Since July, the oil tanker LEO II has been circling aimlessly off the coast of Cyprus 🇨🇾.

Commercial delay? Technical issue?

Neither: she’s playing a key role in bypassing sanctions on Russian oil 🇷🇺, all while appearing to stand still.

Let’s break it down 🧵

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Reposted by SONARROW

Christian Panton @pa.nton.cx · 20d

Last bit of research regarding Gambia and Sierra Leone becoming the major supplier of flag state status for the shadow fleet.

Gambia's hockey stick is accelerating at worrying pace.

Data credit: I pulled all MMSIs broadcasting Gambia and Sierra Leone from the awesome @globalfishingwatch.org API

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Reposted by SONARROW

Christian Panton @pa.nton.cx · 22d

The "pivot to The Gambia" of the shadow fleet is increasing day by day.

But also "pivot to Sierra Leone".

Initially, I thought this was "just" another case of false flagging, unbeknown to the registry.

But something in common about both these nations, causes me to think, that it's not the case.