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Iran says its seized an oil tanker with 1 million barrels of oil, crew of 12

Posted at 6:12 AM, Jul 18, 2019
and last updated 2019-07-18 09:07:45-04

Iran has seized an oil tanker it claimed was carrying 1 million liters of "smuggled fuel," state news agency Press TV said on Thursday.

The semi-official Fars news agency said Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces ambushed the tanker, carrying 12 people on board, on Sunday.

Citing an IRGC statement, Fars reported that the ship -- which has a capacity of 2 million liters -- is a foreign tanker and was seized in an area south of Larak, a small island in the Strait of Hormuz.

Fars added that the ship was carrying fuel smuggled to it on Iranian dhows, or small boats.

The IRGC have denied seizing any other tankers, Fars said.

It is unclear whether the tanker seized Sunday was the same vessel as one that Iran claimed to have assisted earlier this week.

This story has been updated with new reporting from Iranian state media about the amount of oil on board the vessel.

The-CNN-Wire
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The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2019 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.