By Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr.
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, March 21, 2014 – The U.S. Navy’s USS Elrod
relieved the USS Stout of its escort duties for the Morning Glory tanker ship
March 19, Army Col. Steven Warren, a Defense Department spokesman, told
Pentagon reporters today.
The Navy initially took control of the commercial tanker in
international waters by request of the governments of Libya and Cyprus
following its seizure earlier this month by three armed Libyans.
The Morning Glory, according to a DOD statement, is carrying
cargo of oil owned by the Libyan government National Oil Company, and was
illicitly obtained from the Libyan port of As-Sidra.
Warren said 34 sailors from the USS Elrod are aboard the
Morning Glory and all USS Stout personnel have departed the ship.
“We’re going to hand over the Morning Glory to Libyan naval
authorities within the next day or two in international waters just outside of
the territorial water line,” he said.
Everything will be turned over to the government of Libya,
Warren noted, including the three Libyans, the entire 21-member organic crew of
the Morning Glory, the ship and all of its contents.
The change of escorts was for administrative reasons, Warren
said. The USS Stout is assigned to the U.S. European Command area of
operations, while the USS Elrod has the U.S. Africa Command area of operations.
The USS Elrod, an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate, is
homeported in Norfolk, Va., and deployed Jan. 14 to the 6th Fleet area of
operations.
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