Seventeen Indians have been arrested by Iran for allegedly fishing off the coast of an island that is disputed between Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
'Three boats were seized by the coastguards, 17 nautical miles towards Bandar Lenge,' the head of Hormozgan province fisheries, Musa Badilee, was quoted as saying Iran's Fars news agency
Indian embassies in the UAE and Iran say they are aware of the incident, but they have received no official confirmation from either of the governments.
However, embassy sources said there could be seven Indians among those arrested.
'Seventeen Indians and six UAE citizens were arrested for illegal entry into Iranian waters and illegal fishing,' he added.
"We are trying to get details from the Iranian foreign ministry and the Indian consulate in Bandar Abbas is trying to get more information on the incident," an official of the Indian embassy in Teheran told PTI over phone.
Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi says they have sought information from the local authorities.
In the last seven days, Iran had arrested the crews of three UAE boats for illegal entry and fishing in its territorial waters, the news agency reported on Tuesday.