Iran reportedly seized two oil tankers in the Persian Gulf Wednesday, claiming the vessels were smuggling fuel.
Ali Ozmaee, commander of the Fifth Naval Region of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), told the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency one of the tankers carried 600,000 gallons of fuel and had 13 foreign nationals, The Jerusalem Post reported. The other tanker carried more than 790,000 gallons of fuel and had 21 foreign nationals on board.
The vessels were seized south of Abu Musa Island, located between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the Post reported. The island is administered by Tehran but is claimed by the UAE as a territory of the emirate of Sharjah.
It is unknown from which country the tankers sailed, the Post reported, as well as the nationalities of those taken by the IRGC.
Tensions in the region have escalated following Israel’s war against Iranian-backed Hamas terrorists. Iranian-back Houthi terrorists in Yemen have been sending drones and missiles toward Israel that have been shot down by U.S. Navy ships in the Red Sea.
Michael Katz | editorial.katz@newsmax.com
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/iran-oil-tankers-seized/2023/12/07/id/1145202
