France, Jan. 22 -- The French Navy boarded and searched the tanker, named the Grinch, in the western Mediterranean between the southern coast of Spain and the northern coast of Morocco, French maritime authorities said.

The tanker was sailing from Murmansk in northern Russia and is subject to international sanctions, President Emmanuel Macron wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

He added that the vessel was suspected of operating under a false flag.

The operation was carried out with support from several allies, including the United Kingdom, which gathered and shared intelligence that enabled the ship to be intercepted, French military officials told the Associated Press news agency.

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