Illustrative image of an oil tanker. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – Iraq on Sunday denied any connection with an oil tanker seized by Iran in the Gulf for smuggling fuel, Iraqi media reported.

“The ministry does not export diesel to the international market,” Iraq’s oil ministry said in a statement. The statement went on to say that Iraqi authorities were working to gather information about the vessel.

Iranian state media reported on Sunday that the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had seized the tanker, alleging it was smuggling fuel for unnamed Arab states.

Two Iraqi port officials told Reuters that said initial information obtained shows that the seized vessel, a “small ship,” is owned by a private shipping company which is owned by an Iraqi private trader.