According to a report from Reuters, Iran has confirmed that its Revolutionary Guards intercepted a tanker in the Gulf, claiming it was carrying petrochemicals destined for Singapore without proper authorization. This incident marks the first seizure of a vessel by Tehran since the Israeli-U.S. military actions against Iran earlier this year.
The tanker, identified as the Talara and registered under the Marshall Islands flag, was reportedly navigating near the coast of the United Arab Emirates when it was diverted into Iranian waters. Maritime sources indicated that it was transporting high-sulfur gasoil from Sharjah to Singapore through the Indian Ocean.
The management company for Talara, Columbia Shipmanagement, reported losing contact with the vessel approximately 20 nautical miles off Khor Fakkan on Friday morning. They are currently collaborating with maritime security agencies and other stakeholders to re-establish communication with the ship.
Pasha Finance, based in Cyprus, owns Talara. Meanwhile, U.S. military officials have acknowledged awareness of this situation and are closely monitoring developments.
This isn’t an isolated event; Iran’s IRGC has been known to seize commercial vessels in these waters over various alleged infractions like smuggling or technical violations. However, an anonymous U.S. official expressed surprise at this latest action since there had been no similar incidents reported recently.
Following a significant Israeli bombing campaign supported by U.S forces back in June 2023, Iran had scaled back its military operations within this region; their last recorded seizure occurred back in April 2024.
