Egypt works to free citizens held by Iran after tanker seizure

Iran said last month that it had seized a foreign oil tanker carrying four million litres of smuggled fuel near the Iranian island of Qeshm in the Gulf. It did not name the vessel or disclose its nationality, but said that 16 foreign crew members had been detained on criminal charges.

Iran, which has some of the world's lowest fuel prices due to heavy subsidies and a sharp fall in the value of its national currency, has been seeking to curb widespread fuel smuggling by land to neighbouring countries and by sea to Gulf states.

(Reporting by Menna Alaa El-Din and Yomna Ehab)