TEHRAN — Nearly 40,000 liters of smuggled diesel fuel have been seized in Bandar Mahshahr in the southwestern Province of Khuzestan, chief of provincial maritime guards has said.

Lotfali Pakbaz said fuel smugglers were trying to transfer the illicit cargo to Persian Gulf Arab states.

He added some 60,000 liters of smuggled fuel have been seized over the past seven days in the province.

Cheap fuel in Iran has made its trafficking quite enticing. 

Iran has launched a border market to sell diesel fuel to buyers in Pakistan and Afghanistan to counter smuggling of fuel at border areas.

Despite a substantial increase in gasoline fuel in November, which led to widespread protests in Iran, the commodity is still cheapest in the world.  

MH/PA