Iranian state piracy is continuing in the Persian Gulf, with naval commandos of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) once again having hijacked a vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz, this time seizing a crew of 11.
“This boat was sailing from Bandar Lengeh towards United Arab Emirates waters before it was seized 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Greater Tunb Island,” Iranian Brigadier General Ali Ozmayi was quoted as saying on Monday by Iranian state television. “The boat’s 11 crew members have been arrested.”
The vessel was allegedly carrying 250,000 liters of fuel. The identity of the crew members was not revealed. The name of the vessel is unknown, and it is not clear who owns the ship, nor under which flag it was sailing.
This is the second such seizure by the IRGC naval patrol this month; a vessel carrying fuel in the Strait of Hormuz was detained by Iran with 12 Filipino crew members on September 7.
Report: Iran Seizes Another Foreign Tanker in the Gulf
Iranian naval commandos seized at least three foreign oil tankers in the Persian Gulf this past summer. Among them were the UK-flagged Stena Impero, hijacked in July in the Strait of Hormuz with its crew of 23, and the MV Mesdar, also forced into an Iranian port but later released.
