U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media before boarding Air Force One bound for Virginia at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., April 10, 2026.
Evelyn HochsteinReuter
President Donald Trump announced Sunday that the United States had fired on and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman.
In a post on Truth Social, the president said the United States had intercepted a ship called TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman and warned it to stop. When the ship did not stop, they opened fire. The United States has been blockading ships entering and exiting Iranian ports since last week.
“Because the Iranian crew wouldn’t listen, our naval vessels drilled a hole in the engine room to stop them,” Trump said in a post. “U.S. Marines currently have the ship in custody. TOUSKA is under sanctions from the U.S. Treasury Department due to a history of past misconduct.”
The seizure is an apparent escalation of the blockade and comes after Iran opened fire on a commercial ship attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz early Sunday.
A US special envoy led by Vice President J.D. Vance is scheduled to visit Pakistan on Monday for a second round of peace talks with Iran, a White House official told CNBC. Iran has rejected such talks, according to state media reports.
President Trump on Sunday threatened to “destroy every power plant and every bridge in Iran” if Iran doesn’t agree to U.S. terms to end the conflict.
Iran has cited the ongoing blockade, which it sees as a violation of the ceasefire agreed to by the United States and Iran, as one reason for canceling talks in Islamabad scheduled for Monday.
According to VesselFinder, TOUSKA was last known to have transited the Arabian Sea. The container ship is on the U.S. Treasury Department’s sanctions list.
It is unclear whether TOUSKA is the first seizure by the U.S. blockade. President Trump said the ship was intercepted by the USS Spruance, a guided missile destroyer.
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