with the support of the RAF, intercepted and boarded the vessel in a six-hour operation - the first operation of its kind by UK armed forces. The vessel, Smyrtos, will be held and monitored off the south coast of England as investigations continue, the MoD said. Sir Keir Starmer stated: "This successful operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling Putin's war in Ukraine that we will not let them hide." There was no immediate response from Moscow, which has previously described similar interceptions as illegal and "bordering on international piracy". (BBC)