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A U.S. fighter jet struck and disabled a commercial cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman on Saturday after its crew ignored repeated warnings and tried to breach the U.S. naval blockade of Iran, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said.
The jet hit the stern of the Panama-flagged M/V Ocean Molica, also known as the Arika Sun, "with a precision munition, fully disabling the ship’s propulsion without harming the crew," CENTCOM said on X.
The vessel had departed an Iranian port, it said.
It was the first acknowledged U.S. strike near Iran in more than a month, coming two days after U.S. President Donald Trump said American forces would not attack Iran before the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
CENTCOM said four commercial vessels have been disabled and 135 ships turned around since U.S. forces resumed the blockade of all ships entering or leaving Iranian ports on July 14.
U.S. forces have also destroyed 10 tankers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' (IRGC) "multibillion-dollar shadow network," it said.
"All mariners are advised to heed blockade warnings from CENTCOM forces," the command said, urging crews to monitor notices and contact U.S. naval forces on channel 16 in the Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz approaches.
The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said Sunday that a tanker caught fire after being hit on its port side by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz.
The crew was reported safe.
The IRGC said late Saturday that an oil supertanker struck a naval mine and exploded while trying to leave the strait through an unauthorized route.
It was not clear whether the reports concerned the same vessel.
Iran has expanded attacks on commercial ships in recent days, and Kpler said "intensified attacks on tankers" had driven Gulf exports "sharply lower" this week after flows recovered to prewar levels in September.
Trump said Saturday that Iran may step up its actions before the midterms.
"They’ll probably do a little bit extra before the election, thinking it’s going to hurt us," he said in Tennessee. "But we could end it really quick."
"They don’t know how nice I’ve been to them," Trump said, claiming 159 Iranian ships have been sunk since the war began in late February.
He added, "We're thinking about renaming it to the Trump Strait," referring to the Strait of Hormuz, as tensions over the Iran blockade intensify.
The U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran on Feb. 28 that has killed more than 3,000 people, according to Tehran. Iran retaliated with attacks that killed Americans and Israelis before a ceasefire was reached in April.
The U.S. subsequently carried out additional strikes on Iranian sites amid stalled negotiations between Washington and Tehran, despite the signing of a framework agreement in June.
Talks have remained deadlocked due to disagreements concerning navigation through the strategic waterway.
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