US strikes cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman, suspected of violating blockade on Iranian ports

A cargo ship was struck by a US military aircraft in the Gulf of Oman after US authorities suspected it was trying to circumvent the naval blockade of Iranian ports.

The attack took place on Saturday, November 7, and targeted the M/V Huda, a ship sailing under the flag of Saint Kitts and Nevis. According to US Central Command (CENTCOM), the aircraft used precision munitions to hit the vessel’s stern, with the aim of stopping it and preventing it from continuing its voyage.

CENTCOM said the ship had approached an Iranian port and was leaving the area, in violation of the blockade. According to the command, the crew ignored repeated warnings, and the ship had tried several times to breach the restrictions.

Before the attack, US forces asked the crew members to leave the areas that would be hit. However, CENTCOM’s statement did not clarify whether anyone was injured or how badly the ship was damaged.

In its report, the command said that 147 commercial vessels had complied with US forces’ orders and changed course. Five others, according to the same report, were stopped after failing to follow instructions.

CENTCOM also said it had earlier destroyed ten Iranian tankers that it links to a network of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

The strike on the M/V Huda is the first US-reported attack on a cargo ship in the area in nearly a month. On October 10, US forces struck the tanker Ocean Molica in the Gulf of Oman; Washington claimed that it, too, had departed from an Iranian port.

According to a CENTCOM estimate, the naval blockade has prevented the export of more than $25 billion worth of Iranian crude oil. The US authorities’ claim has not been independently verified.