Iran has detained a tanker allegedly carrying smuggled fuel near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.
According to reports by Iranian state-run Islamic Republic News Agency, the tanker carrying 1.3m liters of smuggled fuel was intercepted near Abu Musa island. Sixteen Malaysian crew members onboard the unidentified vessel were detained.
An official from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps told the state media that it is the sixth vessel carrying smuggled fuel that the IRGC’s maritime forces have seized.
Iran has seized several vessels in the past year amid high regional tensions. In July, Iran seized the British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero for alleged marine violations two weeks after Britain seized an Iranian VLCC off the territory of Gibraltar.
