In a story that intertwines the issues of piracy and U.S.-Iran relations particularly relevant to the maritime industry, the U.S. aircraft carrier John C. Stennis rescued 13 Iranian crew members being held captive by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Oman.
A German-owned, Antigua and Barbuda-flagged ship that had been headed for Syria changed course after learning that it was possibly carrying military equipment that the regime planned to use against dissidents.