Iraqi Tanker Seized For Smuggling

Kuwait seized an Iraqi oil tanker for reportedly trying to smuggle 650 tons of fuel to the United Arab Emirates in violation of international sanctions. The official Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) quoted an Interior Ministry statement as saying that Kuwaiti patrol boats intercepted the tanker at dawn on Saturday (June 24) inside Kuwaiti territorial waters while sailing from Iraq's Umm Qasr port to the UAE. It said that 11 crew members were on board the tanker, which it said was carrying diesel fuel. The agency gave no details on what further action was being taken against the tanker. Ships caught smuggling Iraqi oil are usually auctioned off and proceeds are deposited with the United Nations, which supervises the purchase of humanitarian supplies by Iraq. The amount of smuggling activity has risen in parallel with the price of oil.