The US War Department said on Tuesday that US forces boarded an Iranian-linked tanker in the Indian Ocean as the US continues to enforce a blockade against Iran, despite it being a major obstacle to peace talks.
The Pentagon said that the tanker, the Tifani, was carrying Iranian oil and was previously sanctioned by the US, which doesn’t give the US the authority to seize a vessel in international waters, despite the Trump administration’s claims.
“We will pursue global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran — anywhere they operate,” the US War Department said in a statement that included a video of the boarding.
A US military official told The New York Times that US forces took over the vessel in the Bay of Bengal and that it was now up to the White House to decide what to do with the ship and its cargo.
The incident came two days after the US Navy fired on and boarded an Iranian cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman that it said was attempting to break the US blockade of Iranian ports. While the US claims many ships have turned away from Iran, according to data from Lloyd’s List, at least 26 ships carrying oil and gas have sailed in and out of Iranian ports since the blockade started.
