The Hyundai Dubai rescued 23 sailors from the Norwegian tanker Front Altair, Thursday, after receiving a distress call, and then handed them over to Iranian authorities.

CBS News said the captain of the Hyundai Dubai „contacted his company‘s management, which told him to refuse the Iranian request (to turn over the mariners),“ but handed them over as „he felt like he had no choice but to comply with Iranian demands,“ citing declassified U.S. intelligence reports Friday.

An official of the South Korean shipping firm said the company that the captain contacted could have been the ship owner headquartered in Germany, not Hyundai.