A cargo vessel left an Iranian port and tried to transit regional waters despite a US naval blockade against Iran, the US military said. Its crew ignored warnings from US forces before a fighter jet struck the stern of the Panama-flagged M/V Ocean Molica, also known as the Arika Sun, with a precision munition.
The strike fully disabled the vessel’s propulsion and caused no harm to its crew, according to US Central Command.
The US military announced the action on Saturday, saying it had disabled a commercial cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman. The incident took place in regional waters leading away from an Iranian port.
CENTCOM has told mariners travelling through the Gulf of Oman and the approaches to the Strait of Hormuz to follow blockade warnings, monitor notice-to-mariners broadcasts and contact US naval forces.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to its lowest level in more than two months, after attacks on tankers reached their highest level last week since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran in February. Before the war, the strait carried 20% of the world’s oil consumption.
The operator of the bulk carrier could not immediately be reached for comment by Reuters.
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