A post on social media falsely claimed that the Ever Given ship that blocked the Suez Canal was carrying nuclear weapons. There is no evidence to support this – and Evergreen Line, the company that leases the boat, told Reuters the allegation was false.
The original message has now been removed (here) from Facebook; other accounts, however, shared a screenshot (here, here, here, here). It is alleged that information was leaked in the Netherlands that the “EVERGREEN was loaded with weapons and NUKES”. Comments left behind indicate that some users believe the claim is true. “It gets deep. More tentacles than an octopus. WWIII type stuff, ”one person wrote.
The reports were written following news on March 23 of the 400-meter-long Ever Given container stranded on the beach and blocking the Suez Canal (here). The boat was propelled on March 29 (here) so that the journey could resume through the corridor, this is where about 30% of the global container traffic flows annually (here).
Reuters contacted Evergreen Line HQ in Taipei about the claim (www.evergreen-line.com/), saying: “We can strongly deny that any given core material or devices were carried by Ever Given on its journey which was recently unfortunately delayed by the incident in the Suez Canal. ”
Meanwhile, Nukewatch UK, a network monitoring nuclear weapons convoys across the UK (www.nukewatch.org.uk/about-us/), told Reuters: ‘The idea that the Ever Given is loaded with nuclear weapons is nonsense. If the proposal is for some kind of terrorist organization to use Evergreen to move a nuclear bomb and other ammunition, it also seems very unlikely, given how unpredictable container transport now appears to be. ‘
The organization explained that states are not allowed to transfer nuclear weapons among themselves under the Treaty on the Distribution of Nuclear Weapons (here) and that nuclear weapons that are moved within a state, or for deployment on a military basis abroad, are very specialized are transported with high security.
‘In the UK, nuclear warheads are being moved in 44 tonne lead trucks with many security features to protect them from any impact. No country sends them around in ordinary containers, “the spokesperson added. Images of the lead-in trucks can be seen on the Nukewatch UK website (here).
VERDICT
Untrue. There is no evidence that the Ever Given ship carries nuclear weapons. The company that rents the ship said the claim was false – and the cargo ship was not specially equipped to transport such cargo.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here.