An Iranian cargo ship is now in American hands after a tense standoff in the Gulf of Oman left it dead in the water and boarded by U.S. Marines.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance caught up with the Touska on Sunday as it headed for Iran’s Bandar Abbas port. Over six hours, American forces radioed repeated warnings. The crew didn’t comply. Eventually, Spruance opened fire with its 5-inch MK 45 gun, punching through the engine room and killing the ship’s propulsion. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit then climbed aboard and took control.
CENTCOM confirmed the vessel “was in violation of the U.S. blockade.” Video released Sunday night showed the escalating warnings, including this exchange: “Vacate your engine room… we are prepared to subject you to disabling fire.”
President Trump posted the news to Truth Social, saying the Navy “stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom.” He said U.S. Marines have the vessel and are “seeing what’s on board.”
This is the first time since the blockade began April 13 that force was used. At least 25 other ships turned back on their own after being warned off.
Tehran didn’t take it quietly. Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters called it “armed piracy” and vowed that Iranian forces would “soon respond and retaliate.” State media claimed Iran sent drones at U.S. naval assets in response, though that hasn’t been verified.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday that Washington’s conduct suggests it may want to “betray diplomacy.”
Talks are now in doubt. Iran’s state media said there are “no plans” to send negotiators to the next round, blaming what it called America’s “unreasonable and unrealistic demands,” “constant contradictions,” and refusal to lift the blockade. The IRNA news agency said there’s “no clear prospect for fruitful negotiations.”
Trump sounded optimistic just hours before the seizure. He told Axios Sunday morning that “the concept of the deal is done” and called the chances of an agreement “very good.” Vice President JD Vance is expected to lead the next round of talks in Islamabad, joined by envoy Steve Witkoff and senior adviser Jared Kushner. The ceasefire deadline hits midweek.
What Washington is actually asking for hasn’t changed. Iran needs to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, stop enriching uranium, and hand over its existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium. Tehran calls those terms “nonstarters.”
Trump followed the ship seizure with a stark warning. If Iran walks away from a deal, he said, the U.S. could target “every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge” in the country.
More boardings may be coming. The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that the U.S. military is preparing to seize additional Iran-linked vessels as part of a pressure campaign aimed at cutting off Tehran’s oil revenue and supply networks.
Pakistan is still trying to hold the talks together. Pakistani officials spent Sunday on back-to-back calls with their Iranian counterparts, pushing to keep negotiations alive as the gap between the two sides continues to grow.
