Iran boards 10 more tankers with Iraqi oil
Special to World Tribune.com
MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE
Thurday, April 13, 2000
NICOSIA [MENL] -- Iran has escalated its effort to prevent tankers with
smuggled Iraqi oil from leaving the Gulf.
The official Islamic Republic News Agency quoted a senior Revolutionary
Guards naval officer as saying that his units have boarded 10 oil tankers
smuggling Iraqi oil through the Gulf over the past two days.
The 10 tankers, flying various flags, were seized Monday and Tuesday.
Issa Golverdi, head of the Guards naval base at Bandar Abbas, in southern
Iran, said tankers contained a total of 45,000 tons of oil from Iraq.
The United Nations has imposed an international embargo on Iraq and
allows Baghdad to export $5.2 billion of oil every six months. But Iraq is
believed to be illegally exporting another $500 million of oil a year.
Earlier, Iran said it seized two tankers filled with suspected Iraqi
oil. Baghdad has denied that it is smuggling oil and accused Iran of
"playing the American game."
Golverdi said the latest seized tankers have been anchored off the coast
of an Iranian island. He said the documents of more than 100 crew members
have been confiscated.
Iranian commanders said they will no longer permit their territorial
waters to be used for Iraqi oil smuggling. Earlier, U.S. officials said Iran
has cooperated in the Iraqi effort.
In a related development, officials said French companies are expanding
an oil pipeline between Kirkuk in northern Iraq and Syria's Mediterranean
port of Banias. The disclosure was made by French Industry Minister
Christian Pierret during a joint news conference with Syrian Oil Minister
Mohammed Maher Jamal in Damascus on Tuesday.
Neither man elaborated. France is developing oil and gas fields in
Syria.
Thurday, April 13, 2000
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