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Iran's IRGC seizes oil tanker in Gulf of Oman

Open-source reports indicated the Advantage Sweet was bound for Houston, Texas, when the United States said it was seized by Iran's IRGC navy on Thursday afternoon.

This picture taken on June 15, 2019, shows tanker ships in the waters of the Gulf of Oman
This picture taken on June 15, 2019, shows tanker ships in the waters of the Gulf of Oman off the coast of the eastern UAE emirate of Fujairah. — MARWAN NAAMANI/AFP via Getty Images

Iran's Navy seized an oil tanker in international waters in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday, the US Navy's Fifth Fleet said.

The US Navy initially said naval forces of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seized the vessel, named Advantage Sweet, at roughly 1:15 p.m. local time, adding that the ship's crew issued a distress call during the incident.

"Iran's actions are contrary to international law and disruptive to regional security and stability. The Iranian government should immediately release the oil tanker," the Fifth Fleet's statement read.

Following the statement, Fifth Fleet spokesperson Cdr. Tim Hawkins said Iran's navy was behind the seizure, not the IRGC, as initially stated.

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