U.S. seizes Iran-flagged ship Touska in Gulf of Oman
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, earlier than boarding Air Power One on his method to Virginia, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, U.S., April 10, 2026.
Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters
A U.S Navy guided missile destroyer fired on and disabled an Iranian-flagged cargo ship within the Gulf of Oman earlier than Marines boarded and seized the vessel, President Donald Trump mentioned Sunday.
Trump mentioned that the USS Spruance intercepted the Iranian ship, the Touska, and “gave them truthful warning to cease.”
“The Iranian crew refused to pay attention, so our Navy ship stopped them proper of their tracks by blowing a gap within the engineroom,” Trump mentioned in a Fact Social put up.
“Proper now, U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel,” the president mentioned.
He famous that the Touska is underneath U.S. Treasury Sanctions on account of its “prior historical past of criminal activity.”
U.S. Central Command later Sunday launched a video of a Spruance crew member warning the Touska in a radio transmission, “We’re ready to topic you to disabling fireplace.
The Spruance then fired a number of rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch MK gun into the Touska’s engine room after warning the ship’s crew to evacuate that room, in response to a put up on X by Central Command.
That put up mentioned the Touska’s crew “didn’t adjust to repeated warnings over a six-hour interval.”
The U.S. has been working a naval blockade of ships coming into and exiting Iranian ports since final week.
The seizure is an escalation of the blockade and comes after Iran fired upon industrial vessels trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz earlier Sunday. The strait is between the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.
U.S. envoys led by Vice President JD Vance have been anticipated to journey to Pakistan on Monday for a second spherical of peace talks with their Iranian counterparts, a White Home official informed CNBC. Iran has rebuffed these talks, in response to a state media report.
Iran cited the continued blockade, which it views as a breach of the ceasefire reached by the U.S. and Iran, as one in every of its causes for calling off the anticipated negotiations in Islamabad on Monday.
Trump warned on Sunday that if Iran didn’t conform to the U.S.’s phrases to finish the battle, he would “knock out each single Energy Plant, and each single Bridge, in Iran.”
The Division of Protection referred CNBC to the White Home in response to an inquiry looking for extra data on the seizure. The White Home didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
