Unconfirmed accounts indicate the ship may have been halted in dramatic circumstances, with the navy surrounding the vessel and taking over responsibility.

However, an employee at the Suez Canal Authority confirmed that the detaining of the ship had nothing with the Canal Authority but rather “it was arrested by the security authorities,” as it was “a matter of security due to the lack of documentation and papers.”

This is no doubt a huge blow for the Defend Europe project and will likely be draining the already stretched resources of the far-right project.

This revelation certainly explains why the project has been stalled for nearly a week and the ship has not reached the Mediterranean by the dates first circulated by Defend Europe.

Of course, this comes as no great surprise considering the deeply worrying evidence we have produced in the past week, including the criminal past of the ship’s owner and the terrifying prospect of an armed crew being on board being provided by a company that has had its certification suspended in the UK.

We will provide further updates as we have them.

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