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Al-Arabia – Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its forces seized a “foreign vessel” carrying two million liters of smuggled diesel in the Gulf on Sunday.
Citing an IRGC commander, the Tasnim news agency reported that the vessel displayed the flag of an Oceania country, without specifying the country.
The vessel was seized 60 miles off the coast of Iran’s southern port city of Bushehr under a court order, the IRGC commander cited by Tasnim said, adding that 14 foreign crew members were arrested.
He did not specify the nationalities of the crew members but said that they were from two Asian countries.
The seized cargo of smuggled fuel is being delivered to the National Oil Refining and Distribution Company of Bushehr province, the commander added.
Iran, a major oil producer, has among the cheapest petrol prices in the world, which encourages fuel trafficking.
Iranian forces regularly target tankers they accuse of illegally transporting fuel in the Gulf.
In September, Iran seized two oil tankers flying the flags of Panama and Tanzania and arrested their crews for allegedly carrying smuggled fuel in the Gulf.
The US military has recently intensified its presence in the Gulf, accusing Iran of seizing vessels, or attempting to, in the strategic shipping lane.
-With AFP
