WASHINGTON, US- The United States military says it has redirected 100 commercial vessels as part of its naval blockade of Iranian ports, marking a major milestone in Washington’s campaign to restrict maritime trade involving Iran.
The US Central Command said more than 15,000 American soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen took part in enforcing the blockade during its first six weeks.
CENTCOM said its forces also disabled four vessels and allowed 26 others to proceed after determining that their journeys complied with the restrictions.
The blockade applies to commercial vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports.
Ships suspected of violating the restrictions can be intercepted, searched, redirected or seized by US forces operating in the region.
American warships and aircraft have been deployed across the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman and waters near the Strait of Hormuz to enforce the operation.
In one of the interdictions, US Marines boarded the Iranian-flagged oil tanker M/T Celestial Sea in the Gulf of Oman after it was suspected of attempting to reach an Iranian port.
The vessel was searched before its crew was instructed to change course. It was subsequently released.
US Marines also boarded the commercial vessel M/V Blue Star III in the Arabian Sea after it was suspected of heading towards Iran.
The ship was allowed to continue after troops confirmed that its planned voyage did not include an Iranian port call.
Another Iranian-flagged vessel, M/V Touska, was boarded and seized after allegedly ignoring repeated warnings from American forces for about six hours.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance disabled the ship’s propulsion before Marines boarded it by helicopter.
Washington says the blockade is intended to increase economic pressure on Tehran and restrict revenue reaching Iran’s military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Iran has condemned the operation and accused the United States of interfering with commercial navigation and escalating tensions in the region.
The military activity has heightened concern about shipping security around the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic passage used to transport a significant share of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in August that Washington had sufficient naval capacity to maintain the blockade indefinitely by rotating ships and personnel deployed in the region.
CENTCOM says its forces will continue intercepting vessels suspected of violating the restrictions while allowing compliant commercial ships to proceed.
