Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) say they've detained two vessels in the Persian Gulf carrying more than 1 million litres of smuggled fuel, state media said, with 15 foreign crew members handed to judicial authorities.
State media reported that all 15 foreign crew members were taken into custody and referred to judicial authorities for investigation.
No details were released on the vessels’ flag, the crew’s nationalities or the destination of the cargo.
Fuel smuggling is a recurring issue in the region, driven by Iran’s heavily subsidised domestic fuel prices and strong demand in neighbouring markets.
Reuters has reported a series of similar seizures in recent months.
In December, Iranian forces detained a foreign tanker near Qeshm island carrying about 4 million litres of smuggled fuel and arrested 16 crew members, days after stopping another vessel with 6 million litres of diesel in the Gulf of Oman.
In March 2025, the Guards intercepted two foreign tankers in the Gulf with more than 3 million litres of diesel, detaining 25 crew members.
Iranian authorities say such operations form part of a wider effort to curb large-scale maritime fuel smuggling across regional waters.
Meanwhile, nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran are expected to take place in Oman on Friday with a possible confrontation looming as U.S. President Donald Trump builds up forces in the Middle East.
Trump has warned that "bad things" would probably happen if a deal could not be reached, ratcheting up pressure on the Islamic Republic in a standoff that has led to mutual threats of air strikes and stirred fears of escalation into a wider war.
Iran has said it will not make concessions on its formidable ballistic missile programme, calling that a red line in negotiations.
The Trump administration agreed to an Iranian request to move the talks from Türkiye and negotiations are still ongoing about whether Arab and Muslim countries from the region will join the talks in Oman, Axios reporter Barak Ravid said on Tuesday, citing an Arab source.
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As Iran and the United States continue with nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday, Tehran’s extensive ballistic missile programme remains a central point of contention.
Further Iran-U.S. nuclear talks are taking place in Geneva on Thursday (26 February) as diplomacy resumes over Tehran’s nuclear programme following earlier mediation efforts. But will the indirect talks move Iran-U.S. negotiations closer to a deal, and what should be expected from the meeting?
Several countries have begun pulling out diplomatic staff out of Iran and telling their citizens to leave or avoid travelling to parts of the Middle East, as tensions between Washington and Tehran continue to mount.
A third round of indirect nuclear negotiations between Iran and the U.S. began in Geneva on Thursday, with Oman acting as mediator.
A F-16 fighter jet of the Turkish Air Force crashed near a highway in western Türkiye early on Wednesday (25 February), killing its pilot, officials and media reports confirmed.
Newcastle United secured a 3–2 victory over Qarabağ FK in the return leg of the UEFA Champions League play-offs at St James’ Park.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz agreed on Wednesday in Beijing to strengthen economic cooperation while addressing trade imbalances, market access concerns, and the war in Ukraine, during Merz’s first official visit to China since taking office.
Ukraine signalled its readiness for fast-track European Union membership in Kyiv on Tuesday (24 February), as European leaders pledged continued political and financial backing and insisted Russia would gain nothing at the negotiating table.
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Ukrainian and U.S. officials gathered in Geneva for talks on post-war reconstruction on Thursday (26 February) despite a deadlock in peace negotiations with Russia, which pounded infrastructure across Ukraine with drone and missile strikes overnight.
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The situation in Cuba was heating up and called for restraint following a deadly incident involving a Florida-registered speedboat off the coast of the Caribbean island, the Kremlin said on Thursday (26 February).
The United Nations children’s agency UNICEF said on Thursday (25 February) it was deeply concerned by reports that Myanmar military air strikes this week had killed at least five children and dozens of civilians, as fighting intensified across the country.
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