Iran’s military said on April 21 (local time) that one of its tankers entered Iranian territorial waters after breaking through a U.S. maritime blockade.
In a statement, the military’s public affairs office said the Iranian tanker Silicity, backed by an operational escort from Iran’s navy, passed through the Arabian Sea overnight and entered Iranian waters. It claimed the U.S. Navy issued repeated warnings and threats, but that the tanker reached Iranian territorial waters under what it called full security support from Iran’s navy and docked at a southern port.
There was no immediate official comment from the U.S. military.
The U.S. military has stepped up maritime control operations in response to Iran’s moves to block the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. Central Command has been interdicting vessels traveling to and from Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman since April 13 and previously said it had blocked 27 Iran-linked ships through April 20.
On April 19, the U.S. military fired on and seized the cargo ship Tuska after it ignored warnings to turn back while heading to Bandar Abbas in southern Iran.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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