Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps has seized a foreign oil tanker in the Gulf claiming that it was smuggling fuel to some Arab states, Iran’s state TV stated Sunday.
The statement also said that seven sailors onboard of the tanker had been detained.
“The IRGC’s naval forces have seized a foreign oil tanker in the Arabian Gulf that was smuggling fuel for some Arab countries,” TV quoted an IRGC commander as saying.
“It carried 700,000 liters of fuel. Seven sailors onboard of the tanker, who are from different nationalities, were detained,” he noted.
Last month, Iran seized a British tanker in the Strait of Hormuz for alleged marine violations and allowed a second one to proceed after issuing a warning, Reuters reported.
Tensions have spiked between Iran and the West after Iranian commandos seized the British-flagged tanker, which came after British forces captured an Iranian oil tanker near Gibraltar, accused of violating sanctions on Syria.
In other news an Iranian fighter jet crashed Sunday in the south of the country near the Arabian Gulf, with two pilots surviving the accident.
State-run IRNA news agency quoted a local official as saying the crash was caused by a technical problem.
According to the Associated Press, the purpose of the flight was not immediately clear, while regular patrol flights are common in the region.
