Reporting from the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Fars News Agency said, “A vessel carrying 900 tons of smuggled fuel with 12 crew members was seized by the IRGG Navy’s patrol vessels in the Persian Gulf with a court order.”
The report provided no further details.
The IRGC Navy has, over the past years, stepped up its fight against fuel trafficking in the waters off the country’s southern coastline.
Last year, it intercepted 50 million liters of smuggled fuel in the region and returned it to the homeland.
Diesel makes up most of the fuel that is usually smuggled at sea. Each ton equals around 1,190 liters.
Commenting on the recent incident, the US Navy says Iran seized a commercial vessel that may have been engaged in smuggling as it sailed in international waters in the Persian Gulf on Thursday.
The US Navy monitored the situation, and after observing the crew’s behavior and checking the history of the vessel, the Navy took no further action, the CNN cited an official as saying.
The seized ship made no distress call, the official said, and was likely engaged in smuggling.
