Iran's Revolutionary Guards intercept UAE-bound gas tanker

A British maritime security firm, Ambrey, said Iran's Revolutionary Guards intercepted a Togo-flagged, UAE-operated tanker 61 nautical miles southwest of the Iranian city of Bushehr.

Ambrey said a crew member contacted the ship's owner and said armed members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard had boarded it.

The ship's owner said contact with it was temporarily lost when it was seized.

"The incident is not likely to be politically motivated and we do not believe it constitutes an act of war," Ambrey said.

The ship was loaded with marine gas oil off the coast of Iraq and was headed to Sharjah in the UAE, she said.