Overview
- CENTCOM, which on Monday released video of the raid, said Marines fast-roped from USS Tripoli onto the Iranian-flagged M/V Touska after destroyer USS Spruance disabled its engine with 5-inch gunfire following six hours of ignored warnings.
- The vessel remains in U.S. custody, and President Donald Trump said Marines have full control of the ship and are checking its cargo.
- China urged restraint after U.S. commanders last week warned they would seize Iranian vessels, OFAC-sanctioned ships, and cargo such as military equipment, petroleum products, and fissile material under a blockade policy.
- Iran’s military called the seizure armed piracy and vowed retaliation, while the semiofficial outlet Tasnim reported drone strikes on U.S. ships in the Gulf of Oman that U.S. authorities have not confirmed.
- The Touska has been under U.S. Treasury sanctions since 2019, is owned by Iran’s state carrier IRISL, and recently visited Chinese ports including Zhuhai and waters off Shanghai, with trackers noting a brief AIS blackout and a stop near Malaysia’s Port Klang.