Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seized a tanker on charges of fuel smuggling, in the Strait of Hormuz. According to an IRGC commander, the tanker tried to smuggle three million gallons of fuel out of Iran.
Specifically, IRGC commander Rear Adm. Ali Reza Tangsiri noted that it is the first time ever that Iranian officials have seized this kind of amount.
According to Tasnim News Agency, Rear Admiral Tangsiri reported that during the operation, 21 people with different nationalities have been arrested and will face trial.
In comments on the first day of the Iranian year in March 2017, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei called for efforts to fight smuggling and contraband goods as part of plans to stimulate domestic production and combat unemployment.
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In 2018, the IRGC, which has been assigned the task of tackling commodity smuggling in the Persian Gulf, said it will support the administration in the war on smuggling.
Yet, on Monday, April 8, US President Donald Trump designated ISGV as a terrorist organisation.
According to the President, ‘the IRGC actively participates in, finances, and promotes terrorism as a tool of statecraft.‘