The USS Spruance, a US Navy guided-missile destroyer, disabled an Iranian-flagged cargo vessel last weekend after it repeatedly ignored warnings while attempting to bypass the American maritime blockade in the Arabian Sea. The incident marks a rare use of force by the Navy against a non-combat vessel.
The Engagement
According to Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the M/V Touska, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship, was intercepted by the USS Spruance as it headed toward the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. The Spruance issued multiple warnings over a six-hour period, including firing five warning shots, but the Touska failed to comply.
The Spruance warned the Touska's crew to abandon the engine room before firing nine inert rounds from its 5-inch MK 45 gun, effectively disabling the vessel.
Aftermath
Hours after disabling the ship, US Marines boarded the Touska by helicopter and took custody of the vessel and its crew. This operation is part of the broader US effort to enforce a blockade of Iranian ports, aimed at reducing oil revenues critical to Tehran's struggling economy.
The blockade, which began on April 13, involves more than 17 US Navy warships and over 100 aircraft. It coincides with a US operation to clear Iranian mines from the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway critical to global oil shipments.