Egypt: 113 ships cross Suez Canal since Monday

By Mohamed Khabesa

ANKARA (AA) - After the refloating of a massive container ship blocking the Suez Canal, 113 out of 422 waiting vessels crossed the vital waterway since Monday evening, the head of the canal announced on Tuesday.

In a press conference upon Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's visit to the canal, Osama Rabie said that a fresh convoy of stuck ships would resume passage later in the evening.

Rabie also said that the crisis is expected to end in a few days as the backlog dissipates.

He stressed that the stranded ship was not the largest passing through the canal, through which larger ships had traversed without issue.

"The canal accommodates 52% of all ship types and sizes worldwide, which is a very high percentage compared to rest of the other waterways around the world," Rabie said.

Turkey, the US and other nations had offered to help Egypt to resolve the blockage.

The crisis began last Tuesday when the giant ship ran aground in the canal, blocking international trade in one of the world's most critical waterways, leaving hundreds of ships, including oil tankers, stuck at the canal's entrances and sparking a crisis in global supply chains, especially in Europe.

Earlier on Monday, Egyptian authorities announced the start of train-pulling maneuvers to get the ship through the canal, involving 10 giant tugboats operating from four different sides.

The 400-meter-long (1,312-foot) Ever Given, owned by Japanese firm Shoei Kisen KK, was sailing from China to the Netherlands with almost 220,000 tons of goods when it ran aground in the canal.

*Nour Abdullah contributed to this report from Ankara