WASHINGTON: The US military said Marines had boarded an Iranian-flagged oil tanker on Wednesday in the Gulf of Oman that was suspected of attempting to violate Washington’s blockade of Iran.
“American forces released the vessel after searching and directing the ship’s crew to alter course,” said Central Command, which oversees US forces in the region, in a post on X.
It said that US forces have now redirected 91 commercial ships to ensure compliance with the blockade.
The vessel, the M/T Celestial Sea, is at least the fifth commercial vessel to be boarded since the Trump administration imposed the blockade in mid-April, several days into a ceasefire, to pressure Tehran into opening the Strait of Hormuz and accepting a deal to end the war.
Earlier today in the Gulf of Oman, U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit boarded M/T Celestial Sea, an Iranian-flagged commercial oil tanker suspected of attempting to violate the U.S. blockade by transiting toward an Iranian port. American forces released the… pic.twitter.com/1AVT0MudKY
