Iran guards seize ship smuggling fuel in Gulf

More than 50,000 litres (13,000 gallons) of smuggled fuel were discovered” on board on the ship, Mojtaba Ghahramani ays

By AFP
September 03, 2023
The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy (L) transfers crude oil from the Russian-flagged oil tanker Lana (R) (former Pegas ), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, May 29, 2022. — AFP
The Liberian-flagged oil tanker Ice Energy (L) transfers crude oil from the Russian-flagged oil tanker Lana (R) (former Pegas ), off the shore of Karystos, on the Island of Evia, May 29, 2022. — AFP

TEHRAN: Naval forces of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have seized a ship “carrying smuggled fuel” in the Gulf and arrested four crew members, local media reported Saturday.

“More than 50,000 litres (13,000 gallons) of smuggled fuel were discovered” on board on the ship, Fars news agency quoted the chief justice of the coastal Hormozgan province, Mojtaba Ghahramani, as saying.

He said the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps navy had “confiscated” the ship and “arrested four people” during the operation. Neither the origin of the ship nor the date of the operation were immediately disclosed.

Ghahramani said the fuel would be redirected to the country’s “legal distribution network”.

The United States military has in recent weeks beefed up its presence in the Gulf after accusing Iran of seizing or attempting to take ships in the vital waterway. On July 6, the US Navy said the Guards seized a commercial vessel in the Gulf, a day after it accused Iranian forces of two similar attempts off the coast of Oman. Iran later said the vessel seized in the Gulf was carrying “more than one million litres (220,000 gallons) of smuggled fuel”.