Kuwait claims to have thwarted Iranian IRGC infiltration attempt

Four Iranian nationals have been arrested in Kuwait after allegedly attempting to infiltrate Bubiyan Island by sea. The incident occurred on May 1 and resulted in the injury of a Kuwaiti soldier during a confrontation with Kuwaiti forces.

According to the Ministry of Interior, the four men were aboard a fishing boat that was chartered for hostile actions against Kuwait. They admitted to being tasked by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) with infiltrating the island. The group members identified as Colonels Amir Hussein Abd Mohammed Zara’i and Abdulsamad Yadallah Qanwati, Captain Ahmed Jamshid Gholam Reza Zulfiqari, and First Lieutenant Mohammed Hussein Sehrab Faroughi Rad were among those arrested.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has denied the accusations, stating that four Iranian sailors entered Kuwaiti waters due to a malfunction in their navigation system. The ministry has demanded the immediate release of the four detained individuals and condemned what it described as Kuwait’s “inappropriate political and media actions”.

Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the alleged incursion as a “flagrant violation” of Kuwaiti sovereignty and a grave breach of international law. It has demanded that Iran immediately cease “unlawful hostile acts”. The deputy foreign minister has summoned Iran’s ambassador to Kuwait to hand over a formal protest note, reserving Kuwait’s right to self-defence under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter.

This incident follows recent strikes in April that hit Kuwait’s Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery and a power and desalination plant, which Kuwait attributed to Iran. Tehran has denied responsibility for those strikes and instead blamed Israel. The island of Bubiyan holds significant strategic value due to its proximity to key shipping lanes and military installations.

Source: Al Jazeera