U.S. forces stopped and raided a ship transporting oil from Iran on Thursday in a “maritime interdiction” operation.
This comes as the White House maintains a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, targeting ships going to and from Iranian ports.
From Fox News:
The Pentagon released video Thursday showing U.S. forces carrying out "a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel M/T Majestic X transporting oil from Iran, in the Indian Ocean within the INDOPACOM area of responsibility."
"We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate," the Department of War said.
"International waters cannot be used as a shield by sanctioned actors. The Department of War will continue to deny illicit actors and their vessels freedom of maneuver in the maritime domain," it added.
Ship-tracking data shows the oil tanker Majestic X in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia — near where U.S. forces previously interdicted and boarded another stateless sanctioned tanker, the Tifani. The vessel had been headed for Zhoushan, China, according to The Associated Press.
The incident follows a sharp escalation just one day earlier, when Iran attacked three cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz and reportedly captured two of them — intensifying threats to a critical global shipping lane that carries about 20% of the world’s oil during peacetime.
The Majestic X, which sails under a Guyana flag, was formerly known as the Phonix and was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2024 for smuggling Iranian crude in violation of U.S. sanctions, the AP reported.
Overnight, U.S. forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel M/T Majestic X transporting oil from Iran, in the Indian Ocean within the INDOPACOM area of responsibility.
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) April 23, 2026
We will continue global maritime enforcement to… pic.twitter.com/SWF6Jt9Ci4
The incident occurred in the wider Indian Ocean, beyond the Strait of Hormuz, showing that President Donald Trump’s blockade is not limited to the waterway. By stopping the sanctioned tanker while it carried Iranian oil, Washington is signaling that no route is safe for those seeking to benefit the Iranian regime.
"The US has seized the Iranian oil tanker Majestic X " Amir Tsarfati pic.twitter.com/WijjH4Y1cu
— Steephill. Truth to the Battlefield. (@BcSteephill) April 23, 2026
U.S. officials said they relied on a “right-of-visit’ under international law to justify the seizure. This means the ship has fewer legal protections and can be inspected even when traveling on the high seas.
The Pentagon said these operations are part of global enforcement of U.S. sanctions to “disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran — anywhere they operate."