The vessel Sakharov sank 30 nm south of Lavan Island on 4 July 1993 due to the explosion of one of its containers. It was flying the flag of the Russian Federation and carrying containers of chemicals from Portugal to Dammam Port, Saudi Arabia.

The plaintiffs, the Port and Maritime Organisation of Iran, the Iranian Department of Environment, and the Ministry of Agriculture Jihad, brought an action against the carrier, the Joint Stock Shipping Company of North of Russia registered in Arkhangelsk, the Russian Federation.

The plaintiffs argued that chemicals escaped into the maritime environment of the Persian Gulf from some of the containers that stayed floating for some time. Some of the containers posing threats on the shipping lane were relocated to the shore by the Port and Maritime Organisation of Iran. According to a certificate of the Regional Organisation for the Protection of Persian Gulf Environment Against Pollution, the cargo contained compounds such as nitric acid, dichlorodifluoromethane, ethanolamine, and potassium hydroxide, which could have significant destructive effects on the water's natural ecology and poison the water for aquatic animals. Furthermore, containers might be released from the vessel, causing pollution and disturbance to navigation in the region.

The plaintiffs asked the Court to issue an order requiring the defendant to eliminate the risk by refloating the sunken containers and removing the vessel's bunkers.

The defendant challenged the jurisdiction of the Court and alleged that the plaintiffs' claim was time-barred. The defendant also claimed that it was not liable since even if the cargo was dangerous, it was loaded onto the vessel without its knowledge. The defendant claimed that a certificate of the Institute of Consultant Scholars and Engineers indicated that the cargo would not pose a great danger to the maritime environment.

Held: The defendant was ordered to refloat and transfer the containers.

The Court held that the place where the incident occurred and the vessel sank, according to the provisions of UNCLOS, most of which reflect customary international law, in particular art 121.2 of the UNCLOS, and art 14 of the Law of Marine Areas of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea (Law of Marine Areas), is a part of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Iran. The State of Iran has sovereignty over this area according to arts 14 and 15 of the Law of Marine Areas and has jurisdiction to legislate and execute national laws according to art 20 of the Law of Marine Areas. Furthermore, art 5 of the Civil Code of Iran indicates that within the territory of Iran, which includes the EEZ of Iran, foreign nationals (in this case, the vessel Sakharov), like Iranian nationals, are subject to the civil laws of Iran. Under art 21 of the Civil Procedure Code, the jurisdiction of the courts of Iran, particularly the courts of Tehran, is irrefutable. Therefore, the jurisdictional challenge is dismissed.

The claim is not time-barred since there is no contractual relationship between the plaintiffs and the defendant, and thus, the time-bar clauses in the bill of lading or the charterparty may not be extended to their relationship. The time limits stipulated under the Maritime Code and the Commercial Code only apply to the relationship between carriers and cargo owners and their legal successors. In this case, the dispute is between the defendant as the carrier and the plaintiffs as third parties. Therefore, the statutory time limits do not apply to their legal relationship.

The vessel's bunkers and, based on the expert opinions and reports provided by the parties, the containers contain dangerous materials that endanger the maritime environment of Iran. In order to eliminate the danger and secure the security of navigation in the waters above the sunk vessel, and invoking art 37 of the Maritime Code (based on the Protocol of Signature of the MLM Convention 1926), the defendant is ordered to refloat the containers of the sunk vessel and remove the bunkers. Article 37 of the Maritime Code provides:

In cases where sunk vessels or damaged vessels or their wrecks cause disturbance to shipping, and the owner refuses to transfer them, the Port and Maritime Organisation of Iran may, at its own cost, transfer them to a proper place and, if the owner fails to pay the corresponding cost, to arrest them and sell them and reimburse itself out of the proceeds, in compliance with the provisions of arts 29 and 36, in priority to other claimants.