IRGC Seizes Oil Tanker Over Alleged Fuel Smuggling

An oil tanker seized by Iran. Photo: IRNA news agency
An oil tanker seized by Iran. Photo: IRNA news agency
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IRGC Seizes Oil Tanker Over Alleged Fuel Smuggling

An oil tanker seized by Iran. Photo: IRNA news agency
An oil tanker seized by Iran. Photo: IRNA news agency

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps announced it has seized a Togo-flagged oil tanker carrying more than 700,000 liters of fuel in the Gulf, the second such seizure in less than a week.

In a statement, the IRGC said the Togo-flagged “Pearl G” tanker with its nine crew members, who have Indian nationality, was seized by the forces of its Navy's third region on Friday morning following a judicial order.

“Pearl G, which is owned by an Iraqi national residing in the UAE, was offloading smuggled oil from Iranian vessels,” Tasnim reported, adding the vessel had been moved to the port of Bandar Imam Khomeini.

Last week, the IRGC seized another Togo-flagged tanker carrying 1,500 tons of marine gas oil.

British security firm Ambrey said last Monday the vessel had loaded marine gas oil off the coast of Iraq and was destined for UAE's Sharjah when it was intercepted on Sunday, 61 nautical miles southwest of Iran's port of Bushehr.

The Navy confirmed seizure in a statement quoted by Iran's state news agency, saying: “The tanker was systematically engaged in fuel smuggling ... and was seized in the depths of Bushehr's coast by judicial order.”

“The vessel, along with its 12 crew members of Indian and Sri Lankan nationals, has been transferred to Bushehr anchorage and is under supervision,” it added.

Iran, which has some of the world's cheapest fuel due to subsidies and the plunge in the value of its currency, has been fighting rampant smuggling by land to neighboring countries and by sea to other states.

Ambrey said the incident had no political motives but was likely a counter-smuggling operation.

In late January, Iran seized a vessel with the flag of a country from Oceania carrying two million liters of allegedly smuggled fuel.
In May, Iran released seven crew members from a Portuguese-flagged container ship, seized on April 13, after accusing them of links to its arch-foe Israel.
Fuel prices in Iran are among the lowest globally, increasing the profitability of smuggling operations.

But experts previously said that Iran's circumvention of oil sanctions is among the main reasons for the worsening phenomenon of fuel smuggling.

Iran’s Nour News Agency said last December that fuel smuggling was estimated at 20 million liters per day, equivalent to $5 billion.



Iran Says it Repelled Large Cyberattack on Sunday

CCTV footage shows fire from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 26, 2025, as seen in this screengrab from a social media video. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS
CCTV footage shows fire from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 26, 2025, as seen in this screengrab from a social media video. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS
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Iran Says it Repelled Large Cyberattack on Sunday

CCTV footage shows fire from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 26, 2025, as seen in this screengrab from a social media video. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS
CCTV footage shows fire from the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in Bandar Abbas, Iran, April 26, 2025, as seen in this screengrab from a social media video. SOCIAL MEDIA/via REUTERS

Iran repelled a large cyberattack on its infrastructure on Sunday, said the head of its Infrastructure Communications Company, a day after a powerful explosion damaged its most important container port.
"One of the most widespread and complex cyberattacks against the country's infrastructure was identified and preventive measures were taken," Behzad Akbari said on Monday, according to semi-official Tasnim news agency, without giving more detail.
Tehran and Washington concluded a third round of nuclear talks on Saturday in Oman, on the same day Iran's biggest port of Bandar Abbas was rocked by a large explosion whose cause remains unknown.
Chemicals at the port were suspected to have fueled the explosion, but the exact cause was not clear and Iran's Defense Ministry denied international media reports that the blast may be linked to the mishandling of solid fuel used for missiles.
Iran has in the past accused its arch-foe Israel of being behind cyberattacks. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Iran's nuclear infrastructure should be entirely dismantled - not just limited to prevent the development of nuclear weapons.
In 2021, a large cyberattack on Iranian petrol stations was said by Tehran to likely be caused by Israel. In 2023, a similar but larger cyberattack disrupted about 70% of petrol stations, with a group called "Predatory Sparrow" claiming the attack as retaliation to "the aggression of the Islamic Republic and its proxies in the region."