Both sides of the House declared that the national interest should be prioritised above all else in regard to the situation surrounding Tuesday's Russian tanker explosion, though did this not stop either side from pointing political fingers at the other over allegedly spreading misinformation, being untrustworthy, and demonstrating "surreal leadership."

On Tuesday, a Russian-flagged tanker carrying liquefied natural gas was hit with a suspected drone strike just outside Maltese waters, starting an onboard fire and later causing it to sink.

While updating the Parliament of Malta on this situation on Wednesday, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri stated that all 30 crew members onboard the ship were saved by Libyan authorities. Two crew members required medical assistance in Libya following the explosion and the subsequent onboard fires.

The Armed Forces of Malta was informed of this tanker explosion at 1:20pm on Tuesday and after communicating with Libyan authorities and coordinating with Moscow and the ship owners, a Maltese AFM plane flew out to the site to assist in the rescue operation and remained there until all crew members were rescued.

This incident occurred some 150 nautical miles away from Malta, though just some three nautical miles away from Malta's SAR region in the Mediterranean Sea. The waves reportedly moved the ship into the Maltese SAR area by Tuesday night.

Minister Camilleri disclosed that while this incident did not occur in Maltese waters or in the Maltese Search and Rescue (SAR) region, Maltese authorities had to react accordingly due to the incident's close proximity.

The Home Affairs Minister said that while in Parliament on Tuesday, he, the Prime Minister, the Opposition leader, and the PN's respective Shadow Minister held an urgent meeting to discuss what had just happened. Minister Camilleri stated that in this meeting, he shared all the facts he had at hand with the Prime Minister and the Opposition's representatives, including by showing them pictures he possessed of the incident on his laptop.

Minister Camilleri ended his opening remarks by declaring that in such sensitive instances, "we must proceed with caution so that all information given to the public is factual," before reiterating that matters of this kind must not be sensationalised for partisan interests.

The Prime Minister expressed disappointment that Opposition leader Alex Borg posted what happened shortly after this meeting, on Tuesday evening, though stated that the explosion had occurred in Malta's SAR waters.

Abela added that Borg corrected his post around an hour later, before editing it again 13 minutes later to reverse this correction "back to incorrect information, that it happened in the Maltese Search and Rescue Region."

The Prime Minister condemned Opposition leader Borg for sharing this false information, stating that if this was the case, then "this could have put Maltese neutrality at stake."

"We cannot have a replica of what used to happen in the pandemic, when the Opposition scare-mongered in public, and contradicted science. We were responsible yesterday and we consulted the Opposition, but then we expected minimum courtesy for them not to forward false, misleading information to the public," Prime Minister Abela said.

Prime Minister Abela said that the Nationalist Party's Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, Darren Carabott, falsely stated that an AFM ship went on-site. PM Abela noted that this "would have been impossible" since the tanker explosion occurred some 150 nautical miles away, which he said was equivalent to triple the distance between Malta and Sicily. He said that at cruising speed, an AFM boat would have taken 10 hours to arrive at the site.

The Prime Minister pleaded for responsibility and maturity in such situations to keep citizens and businesses safe amidst these circumstances.

He added that while war prevails in Ukraine, the Middle East, and now in the Gulf region, Malta must focus on continuing to have a strong economy and do what it must: "supply good healthcare, continue improving education, and keep ensuring that energy subsidies are retained."

PN MP Darren Carabott insisted that he and PN leader Borg were told that an AFM ship went on-site following the tanker explosion, saying that the Prime Minister and the Home Affairs Minister either "didn't know what [they] were talking about, were misinformed, or are introducing partisan piques in discussions of national security."

Carabott also commented that it was the PN Opposition who actually informed the government about this tanker explosion, not vice-versa, and that he knew about this situation before some Cabinet members.

The Opposition MP asked Minister Camilleri to share what time the explosion itself occurred, at what time the tanker entered Maltese waters, if it is still in Maltese waters, if this ship faced EU sanctions, why the government only reacted after being informed by the Opposition, and if the exact source of the explosion is known.

PN MP Mario de Marco stated that he doesn't believe anyone meant to cause any harm while commenting that the tanker ended up in Maltese waters, mentioning that three nautical miles is "not an enormous distance" away from the Maltese seas.

He also asked the government to disclose its official position on military interventions that have arisen in Iran and nearby Gulf countries in recent days.

PN leader Alex Borg extended the Opposition's hand to cooperate with the government on this situation, though he expressed disappointment that he was "attacked" by Labour Party media following his social media updates.

Borg noted that "we must not try to win or lose political points from this situation." He said that whether this occurred in international waters, in Malta's SAR region, or in Libya's, "we must remain careful in the national interest, instead of turning this into a political game."

Borg declared that he went to social media following his internal meeting on Tuesday because he believes the general public have the right to know about such matters, and that the State is obliged to keep the people informed.

He added that the country has already observed the political games that the Prime Minister likes to play, as seen recently with the still pending Chief Justice appointment and in matters that concerned his predecessor, Bernard Grech, as PN leader.

Borg concluded that the government must answer all questions it receives on this matter from the Opposition and the general public, and that the government must be transparent and factual in all it says.

Concluding this discussion, Minister Camilleri said that "talk is cheap" and that "it's easy to speak about the national interest." He questioned how the PN representatives understood that an AFM boat had been sent on-site when he had shown them aerial photos of the scene from above.

Camilleri told the House that he felt fortunate that the Prime Minister was witness to this internal meeting, as he doesn't think he can have meetings alone with the Opposition.

Prime Minister Abela condemned Borg for presenting false information to the public in his attempt to inform the people. He also criticised that there would have been a huge difference in the State's obligations if this incident had occurred inside Malta's SAR region, and that Borg is wrong to think otherwise.

He concluded that Malta must work to come out stronger from all challenges that arise.

Minister Bonett updates Parliament on vessel hit by missiles in Strait of Hormuz

During Wednesday's plenary, the Minister for Transport, Chris Bonett, stated that on Wednesday afternoon, a boat flying the Maltese flag, named MV Safeen Prestige, was hit by two missiles while passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

The ship belongs to an Egyptian company, the Minister disclosed.

This separate incident occurred just off the coast of Oman amid rapidly escalating tensions in the Gulf at 3:09pm, Malta time.

The ship was hit on its stern, above sea level.

All 24 people onboard were salvaged after the missile strikes caused relatively heavy damage and after a fire erupted primarily in the engine room. From the 24 sailors onboard, 21 were of Egyptian and three were of Ukrainian nationality, Minister Bonett said. All were uninjured and rescued by the Omani navy.

Minister Bonett said that Maltese authorities are analysing if further steps must be taken from their end. He has since requested for the Maritime Safety Committee to convene and follow this situation's developments.

"As a country, we once again appeal for the safety and security of ships and, more importantly, of all seafarers performing their duties, particularly those on merchant ships," he said.

Bonett added that no conflict should hamper ships' principles of freedom of navigation, in adherence to international maritime law, in order to uphold the security of global maritime trade.