TEHRAN, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday demanded the immediate release of four Iranian nationals detained by Kuwait on the charge of having attempted to "infiltrate" Kuwaiti territory.
"In clear attempt to sow discord, Kuwait has unlawfully attacked an Iranian boat and detained 4 of our citizens in the Persian Gulf," Araghchi said in a post on social media platform X.
He called Kuwait's act "illegal," adding that the incident took place near an island "used by the United States to attack Iran."
"We demand immediate release of our nationals and reserve right to respond," he noted.
Kuwait on Tuesday condemned what it described as an infiltration attempt by an armed group allegedly belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps onto Bubiyan Island on May 1.
Kuwait said the "infiltrators" clashed with Kuwaiti armed forces before being apprehended, and one Kuwaiti serviceman was injured.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry rejected the claim as "baseless," saying four Iranian officers had entered Kuwait's territorial waters due to a navigation system disruption while on a routine maritime patrol mission.
The developments come amid heightened regional tensions following the U.S.-Israeli military operations against Iran, which started on Feb. 28. Kuwait said it had intercepted hundreds of drones and missiles during the conflict before a ceasefire took effect on April 8. Enditem
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