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President Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break through its blockade at the Strait of Hormuz by "blowing a hole" in its engine room.
Trump said the USS Spruance destroyer intercepted Iran's Touska cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman after the Tehran vessel refused the Americans' warnings to stop.
"Today, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship named TOUSKA, nearly 900 feet long and weighing almost as much as an aircraft carrier, tried to get past our Naval Blockade, and it did not go well for them," he wrote. "The U.S. Navy Guided Missile Destroyer USS SPRUANCE intercepted the TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman, and gave them fair warning to stop. The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom. Right now, U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel. The TOUSKA is under U.S. Treasury Sanctions because of their prior history of illegal activity. We have full custody of the ship, and are seeing what’s on board!"
Trump had previously announced that negotiations with his envoy scheduled to be in Pakistan in hopes of extending the ceasefire agreement between the two countries even after a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz in a post shared on his Truth Social account Sunday.
The reported process of negotiations came after Tehran said it would be open to talks with the U.S., but reaffirmed its decision to once again close the Strait of Hormuz.
“It is impossible for others to pass through the Strait of Hormuz while we cannot,” Iranian parliamentary Speaker Mohammed Bagher Qalibaf said in an interview on state television late Saturday (April 18) via the Associated Press.
A ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon was reached on Thursday (April 16) and went into place on Friday (April 17). Iran had initially claimed that Lebanon was included in its ceasefire with the U.S. before Israel launched attacks on Hezbollah.
The Strait of Hormuz, which serves as a vital waterway for trade along the Persian Gulf responsible for an estimated 20% of the world's oil supply traveling through, was initially blockaded by Iran in response to the United States and Israel's 'Operation Epic Fury' prior to its ceasefire agreement and most recently due to Israel's failed truce with Lebanon. The blockade has led to gas prices soaring in the United States as the price of oil surpassed $100 per barrel multiple times.
The U.S. military began its own blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas in adherence with Trump's orders earlier this week.