The commander of the Second Naval Zone of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Haidar Henarian, announced the interception of two cargo vessels that were engaged in fuel smuggling in Gulf waters near Farsi Island, off the coast of Bushehr in southern Iran.

He stated that 15 crew members from the two vessels have been referred to judicial authorities to complete the necessary legal procedures.

The two vessels were seized while transporting more than one million liters of smuggled fuel. The Iranian official explained that the ships had been involved in organized fuel smuggling operations over the past several months, noting that they were monitored before being intercepted.

This security operation carried out by the Revolutionary Guard comes amid increasing discussion of a potential U.S. attack on Iran, as well as ahead of anticipated talks between the two sides scheduled for Friday morning.