US seizes Iranian-flagged cargo ship in Gulf blockade operation

A released video showed the USS Spruance firing into the engine room of the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Touska before U.S. Marines boarded and took control, turning a blockade warning into a live seizure at sea. The U.S. said the ship had ignored repeated warnings over six hours and is now in American custody.

That is the clearest evidence yet of how Washington is enforcing its blockade of Iranian ports, and it sharpens the legal and strategic questions around the operation. President Donald Trump said the Touska was under U.S. Treasury sanctions because of prior illegal activity, while U.S. Central Command said the vessel was headed toward Bandar Abbas when it was intercepted in the north Arabian Sea at 17 knots.

The blockade began last week and covers all Iranian ports and coastal areas, including the Arabian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, while allowing transit through the Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports. The U.S. notice said neutral ships in Iranian waters had until 3 p.m. London time to leave or face interception, diversion and capture, though humanitarian cargo such as food and medical supplies could still move if inspected.

The seizure lands in a narrow and volatile waterway that carries a major share of the world’s oil traffic. U.S. officials have also tied the operation to a broader campaign they call Operation Epic Fury, which the Department of War says began on Feb. 28, 2026, with U.S. and partner forces striking targets to dismantle Iran’s security apparatus. The department said mine-clearance preparations were already underway in the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring how quickly a maritime interdiction can become an escalation with global energy consequences.

CENTCOM said 25 commercial vessels have been turned around or redirected since the blockade started, and it said one Iran-flagged cargo ship had already been turned back earlier in the week. Even so, this is the first reported case in which U.S. forces used fire to disable and board a ship during the blockade, a step that raises the risk of retaliation and broadens the stakes for every vessel moving through the Gulf.

The timing threatens diplomacy as much as shipping. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it had no plans for a new round of talks after the seizure, and analysts warned the move could inflame tensions further and jeopardize negotiations that had been under discussion in Islamabad.