U.S. forces fire on 2 Iran-flagged oil tankers to stop them docking at Iranian port, CENTCOM says

U.S. forces fired on two Iran-flagged oil tankers to stop them from docking at an Iranian port Friday in violation of the American blockade in the area, according to U.S. Central Command.

A U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet “disabled both tankers after firing precision munitions into their smokestacks, preventing the non-compliant ships from entering Iran,” the military said in a statement.

The statement named the “unladen oil tankers” as the M/T Sea Star III and M/T Sevda.

The U.S. has been blockading Iranian ports since the two countries failed to reach a peace agreement in Islamabad, Pakistan, in early April. Iran in return has enforced a de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, charging non-allied boats to pass through the vital waterway.

Both of the crude oil tankers turned off their Automatic Information System transponders weeks ago and were operating covertly. The Sevda was last located in the Malacca Strait – a known Iranian fuel smuggling route – 27 days ago, and the Sea Star III was in the same area more than a month ago.

In its statement, CENTCOM said a U.S. fighter jet disabled another Iranian-flagged oil tanker, M/T Hasna, trying to sail into an Iranian port Wednesday, firing several rounds into its rudder.

The military says it has intercepted more than 50 vessels “to ensure compliance.”