‘A pirate state': Israel condemns Iranian seizure of oil tanker

Israel on Saturday condemned Iran’s seizure of Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker Talara on Friday morning in the Gulf of Oman.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar compared Iran to its proxy, Yemen’s Houthi militia, in a post to X, saying, “Iran is acting as a pirate state and terrorizing naval routes.”

Iran is a threat to the Middle East, world peace and global trade, said Sa’ar, calling on the “free world” to declare the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist organization.

The tanker, carrying 30,000 tons of petrochemicals, was traveling from the United Arab Emirates to Singapore, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

The IRGC Navy said it acted on an Iranian court order on violations by the vessel, “to protect the national interests and resources of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

After a review of the cargo and verification of its documentation, it was concluded that the ship was “carrying unauthorized cargo,” the navy said.

Columbia Shipmanagement, the ship’s manager, said the Talara was carrying high-sulfur gas oil, a type of heavy fuel oil used mainly as fuel for marine vessels.

The incident took place roughly 20 nautical miles (~23 miles) off the coast of Khor Fakkan, UAE, according to Columbia Shipmanagement.

U.S. Naval Force Central Command said on Friday that it was aware of the seizure and was “actively monitoring the situation.”

“Commercial vessels are entitled to largely unimpeded rights of navigation and commerce on the high seas,” it said.

Iran faces a wide-ranging set of sanctions from the United Nations, the United States, European Union and United Kingdom. These measures include sharply restricting its oil and gas exports, with enforcement aimed at foreign refineries and shipping networks involved in facilitating those sales.