Trump Announces US Navy Seized Blockade-Defying Iranian Cargo Ship After ‘Blowing A Hole’ In Engine Room

President Donald Trump announced Sunday the U.S. Navy fired upon and seized an Iranian-flagged vessel trying to run the American blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump announced a naval blockade of the maritime chokepoint in an April 12 Truth Social post, saying ships that paid an Iranian toll in either Chinese yuan or cryptocurrency would be intercepted by the U.S. Navy. The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG-111) fired on the container ship Touska in the Gulf of Oman, “blowing a hole” in the vessel’s engine room, Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

“Guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) intercepted M/V Touska as it transited the north Arabian Sea at 17 knots enroute to Bandar Abbas, Iran. American forces issued multiple warnings and informed the Iranian-flagged vessel it was in violation of the U.S. blockade,” CENTCOM said. “After Touska’s crew failed to comply with repeated warnings over a six-hour period, Spruance directed the vessel to evacuate its engine room. Spruance disabled Touska’s propulsion by firing several rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch MK 45 Gun into Touska’s engine room. U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit later boarded the non-compliant vessel, which remains in U.S. custody.”