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A U.S. warship stopped a crude oil tanker from sailing to an Iranian port over the weekend, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Monday, framing it as part of a broader push to enforce restrictions on maritime traffic linked to Iran.
CENTCOM said the guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) enforced the blockade against the M/T Stream after the vessel attempted to make its way toward an Iranian port.
The command said the incident took place Sunday but gave no further details, including where it happened or how it determined the tanker was heading to Iran. Data from Marine Tracker identified the ship as a crude oil tanker.
The latest interception comes after Washington said on April 13 that it would blockade seaborne trade with Iran to curb flows that could support the country’s economy.
U.S. forces have turned back 37 vessels since then, including six tankers loaded with Iranian oil that were forced to return to Iran in recent days.
The blockade, which U.S. President Donald Trump claimed costs Iran $500 million per day, has become a key sticking point in peace negotiations, with Tehran repeatedly arguing that it violates the ceasefire reached between the two sides.
On the U.S. side, forces have seized multiple ships accused of breaching the blockade or carrying Iranian-linked cargo. An Iranian-flagged cargo vessel, Touska, was intercepted in the Gulf of Oman after attempting to reach Bandar Abbas; U.S. forces disabled the ship before taking control of it.
In the following days, U.S. operations expanded beyond the Gulf. Authorities boarded and seized at least one oil tanker in the Indian Ocean and intercepted several others tied to Iranian oil shipments, including three tankers redirected in Asian waters.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized two container ships attempting to leave the Gulf after opening fire on them and a third vessel, marking Tehran’s first such move since the conflict began.
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