Iran seizes two Greek oil tankers in Persian Gulf amid row over US tanker seize

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard on Friday seized two Greek oil tankers within the Persian Gulf, hours after Athens assisted the US in seizing an Iranian oil tanker within the Mediterranean Sea.

In April the Russian-flagged Pegas was stopped in Greek waters for carrying sanctioned Iranian crude. (Photo: AP/File)

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard seized two Greek oil tankers on Friday within the Persian Gulf, simply after Athens assisted the US in seizing an Iranian oil tanker over alleged sanctions violations within the Mediterranean Sea.

The Guard’s announcement comes as tensions stay excessive between Iran and the West over stalled negotiations relating to its quickly advancing nuclear program.

The Guard issued a press release on its web site, accusing the unnamed tankers of unspecified violations.

Greece’s Foreign Ministry stated Iranian authorities “violently took over” the 2 ships in an “act of piracy.”

Asked concerning the Iranian declare, Cmdr. Timothy Hawkins of the US Navy’s Mideast-based fifth Fleet instructed the AP that “this is what we are tracking,” however declined to remark additional.

Iran had threatened to take “punitive action” earlier Friday over Athens being concerned within the US seizure of an Iranian oil tanker in Greek waters.

Iran’s Nour News web site, near its safety providers, made the menace simply as transport information web site Lloyd’s List stated it believed two Greek tankers had been seized within the Persian Gulf. Quoting nameless business sources, Lloyd’s reported that the 2 ships had been boarded after Iranian navy helicopters approached them on Friday afternoon. It stated each tankers had simply been loaded with Iraqi crude oil.

The crude oil cargo of an Iranian-flagged tanker that was stopped in Greek waters final month has been seized and is being transferred to a different vessel following a request from the United States, a Greek official stated Thursday.

The official stated following a “judicial intervention by US authorities concerning the ship’s cargo” the method is at the moment underway, at US authorities expense, for the oil “to be handed over” off the port of Karystos on the Aegean Sea island of Evia.

The official, who requested to not be recognized with a purpose to focus on the case, didn’t present additional particulars. A Justice Department spokesman in Washington and the US Embassy in Athens declined to remark Thursday.