Akshay DidwaniyaA Botswana-flagged vessel defied American naval warnings in the Persian Gulf and paid the price when a Hellfire missile tore through its engine room.
US Forces Cripple Oil Tanker Attempting to Breach Iran Blockade
American military forces disabled an empty oil tanker on June 2 after it tried to reach Iran’s key oil export hub on Kharg Island, ignoring warnings from US warships. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed the strike via its official post on social media platform X.
“The United States Armed Forces disabled an empty oil tanker attempting to enter an Iranian port in the Arabian Gulf on June 2,” the statement read.
Tanker Lexie Ignores Warnings Gets Hit by Hellfire Missile
The vessel identified as the tanker Lexie, sailing under a Botswana flag headed straight toward Kharg Island. Kharg Island serves as Iran’s primary crude oil export terminal. When the crew brushed off repeated warnings from US forces, American troops fired a Hellfire missile directly into the ship’s engine room bringing it to a dead stop.
CENTCOM also revealed broader blockade enforcement numbers. So far, American forces have disabled six commercial vessels and redirected 122 others as part of maintaining the naval blockade against Iranian ports.
Also Read | US Offers to Lift Iran Naval Blockade But There’s One Condition
Backdrop: US–Iran Conflict and the Road to Blockade
The United States and Israel launched military strikes against targets inside Iran on February 28 killing more than 3,000 people. Washington and Tehran declared a ceasefire on April 8. Subsequent peace talks held in Islamabad yielded no breakthrough. No fresh fighting broke out after that but the US moved swiftly to impose a full naval blockade on Iranian ports. Mediators are now scrambling to set up a new round of negotiations between the two sides.
Aditya Didwaniya
Pratik Agrawal