Iran's IRGC intercepts UAE-managed tanker, Ambrey says

Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have intercepted a Togo-flagged, UAE-managed products tanker carrying 1,500 tons of marine gas oil, British security firm Ambrey said on 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, Ambrey said.

Ambrey added that the incident is unlikely to be politically motivated and is not assessed as a 'war' event.

The interception was likely a counter-smuggling operation by the IRGC, as the vessel's "trading behavior was consistent with previous IRGC target profile", Ambrey said.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards' Navy confirmed seizure of the tanker 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 Betelgeuse vessel, along with its 12 crew members of Indian and Sri Lankan nationality, has been transferred to Bushehr anchorage and is under supervision," the agency quoted the statement as saying.

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

No further information was provided regarding the fate of the vessel.

(Reporting by Reuters)