WASHINGTON, May 30 — The United States military says it has disabled a commercial vessel that was reportedly sailing toward an Iranian port, marking another dramatic development in the growing maritime tensions surrounding Iran.
According to a statement released by the US Central Command (CENTCOM), American forces tracked the Gambia-flagged cargo ship M/V Lian Star as it traveled through international waters in the Gulf of Oman on a course toward Iran.
CENTCOM said military personnel issued more than 20 warnings to the vessel and informed its crew that the ship was allegedly violating a US-imposed blockade. The command claimed that the crew failed to comply with repeated instructions to alter course or stop its journey.
Following the warnings, a US military aircraft fired a Hellfire missile into the vessel’s engine room, disabling the ship and preventing it from continuing toward its destination, according to the statement.
“The ship is no longer transiting to Iran,” CENTCOM said, adding that the operation was carried out as part of ongoing efforts to enforce the blockade.
The incident highlights the increasingly tense atmosphere in the waters surrounding the Gulf of Oman and the broader Persian Gulf region, where shipping routes play a crucial role in global trade and energy supplies.
CENTCOM also reported that American forces have intensified enforcement measures in recent weeks. According to the command, five commercial vessels have been disabled and 116 others redirected in order to uphold the blockade.
The claims made by the US military could not be independently verified, and no immediate statement was available from Iranian authorities or the operators of the M/V Lian Star.
The latest confrontation underscores the continuing struggle over maritime access and freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most strategically important waterways, where regional rivalries and international tensions continue to shape events at sea.
