Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seize 2 oil tankers in Gulf
IRGC-linked agency claims tankers were ‘smuggling’ over a million liters of fuel, says ’15 foreign crew members were referred to the judiciary’; unclear what flag ships were flying
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
TEHRAN — Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Thursday seized two oil tankers with their foreign crews in Gulf waters for “smuggling fuel,” the Tasnim news agency reported.
It was not immediately clear what flags the tankers were carrying, nor the nationalities of the crews.
The seizures took place amid heightened tension, as Washington dispatched a naval group to the region after Tehran’s deadly response to anti-government protests and US President Donald Trump’s warning that Tehran must accept a nuclear deal.
“More than one million liters of smuggled fuel were found on board of the two vessels,” Tasnim reported, and a total of “15 foreign crew members were referred to the judiciary.”
The Guards captured the vessels near Iran’s Farsi island in the Gulf, the IRGC-linked agency said.
The tankers have been “engaged in smuggling operations for several months and were identified and intercepted following surveillance, interception and intelligence operations” by naval forces of the IRGC, it added.
????????????BREAKING :Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it has seized two oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, alleging they were carrying around one million liters of smuggled fuel. About 15 foreign crew members were reportedly on board. pic.twitter.com/U0r6v1TkxC
— Defense Intelligence (@DI313_) February 5, 2026
Iranian forces regularly target tankers that Tehran accuses of being part of the illicit trade in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.
The seizure is the latest in a series of similar incidents in recent months.
In another incident on Tuesday, this one in the Strait of Hormuz, the US Central Command said IRGC forces had approached a US-flagged tanker at speed and threatened to board and seize it.
Maritime risk management group Vanguard said the Iranian boats ordered the tanker to stop its engine and prepare to be boarded. Instead, the tanker sped up and continued its voyage.
Retail fuel prices in Iran are among the lowest in the world, making smuggling fuel to other countries particularly profitable.
The Times of Israel Community.