U.S. Navy: Iran Seizes Suspicious Ship Likely Involved in Smuggling

A spokesperson for the U.S. Navy stated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forcibly seized a commercial vessel in international waters of the Persian Gulf on Thursday. He mentioned that the seized ship was likely involved in smuggling activities, and the U.S. Navy ultimately decided not to take any action. Tim Hawkins, spokesperson for the U.S. Fifth Fleet stationed in the Middle East, told Voice of America that the U.S. Navy was monitoring the situation and chose not to respond further. According to Reuters, a British maritime security company reported awareness of Iranian forces attempting to seize a small tanker flying the Tanzanian flag, approximately 59 nautical miles northeast of the port city of Dammam in Saudi Arabia. The company noted that Iran regularly obstructs the movement of smaller tankers suspected of oil smuggling. Earlier, the U.S. Navy announced on Wednesday that it intervened to prevent the seizure of two commercial tankers by Iranian forces in the region. Hawkins stated that U.S. forces are vigilant and ready to protect maritime legal rights in the Middle East waters. Iranian officials announced on Thursday that they have a court order to seize the Richmond Voyager, a Bahamas-flagged ship managed by the American oil company Chevron, claiming that the vessel had collided with an Iranian ship. Britain expanded its sanctions against the Islamic Republic without labeling the IRGC as 'terrorists'. The Israeli army stated that in response to regional missile attacks, it targeted areas in southern Lebanon.