KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1 ― The 16 crewmen arrested by Iran for allegedly smuggling oil near Abu Musa Island in the Persian Gulf are likely not Malaysians as reported, Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said last night.
However, he said he still needed additional details from Iran before he could confirm this.
“We have just found out and so far the 16 crews are most likely not Malaysians. But I cannot say for sure. We are still waiting for the most accurate information from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
“We have checked, most likely, no Malaysians are involved, but I cannot mention anything further,” he said when met at the New Year’s Eve celebration in Dataran Merdeka.
On Monday, the AFP news agency reported that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards seized a ship suspected of fuel-smuggling and arrested 16 crew members that were believed to be Malaysians.
Quoting the website of IRIB state television, the report said Iranian authorities confiscated 1.3 million litres of “smuggled fuel” from the unnamed vessel 15 nautical miles from Abu Musa island.
Tensions have been high in the Gulf this year, after the United States stepped up a stated campaign of “maximum pressure” on Iran following its withdrawal from a landmark nuclear deal in 2018.
Throughout 2019, Iran reportedly detained at least four vessels especially near the Straits of Hormuz.
