A screen capture from a video said to show the seizure of the container ships MSC Francesca and Epaminondas in the Strait of Hormuz, broadcast on Iranian State TV, and released April 22, 2026, shows soldiers taking part in the operation. IRIB/Handout via REUTERS
The US military on Thursday seized another tanker tied to the smuggling of Iranian oil, escalating a standoff with Iran a day after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps took control of two vessels in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The Defense Department released video showing US personnel aboard the oil tanker Majestic X, which was seized in the Indian Ocean. “We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate,” the Pentagon said.
Ship-tracking data placed the Majestic X in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, roughly the same area where the oil tanker Tifani was earlier seized by US forces. The Majestic X had been bound for Zhoushan, China. Iran did not immediately comment on the seizure.
The action followed Iran’s attack on three cargo ships in the strait, in which Tehran captured two vessels — an escalation that has intensified disruptions in the waterway that normally carries about 20% of the world’s traded oil.
The Majestic X, flagged in Guyana and previously named Phonix, was sanctioned by the US Treasury in 2024 for allegedly smuggling Iranian crude in violation of US sanctions.
On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire while keeping an American blockade of Iranian ports in place. The standoff between Washington and Tehran has effectively choked off nearly all exports through the strait, with no immediate resolution in sight. — with Agencies
CENTCOM says more than 30 ships affected by US blockade
April 23, 2026 10:10 am
Washington: The US military’s Central Command said on Thursday its forces in the Mideast had “directed 31 vessels to turn around or return to port as part of the US blockade against Iran”. AP
