US forces boarded an oil tanker in the Indian Ocean overnight that was sanctioned by Washington for transporting Iranian crude, the US military said on Friday.
“US forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel MT DAVINA located in the Indian Ocean,” the US Indo-Pacific Command said in a post on X.
“We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate,” said the post, which included photos and a video clip of the operation.
Overnight, U.S. forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel MT DAVINA located in the Indian Ocean within the INDOPACOM area of responsibility.
We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks… pic.twitter.com/7sNPNx0doN
— U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (@INDOPACOM) June 5, 2026
The Davina was sanctioned in 2024 by the US Treasury, which said it had delivered oil from Iran to China.
Since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran in late February, Tehran’s forces have imposed a naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway connecting the Gulf with the Indian Ocean.
The United States later set up its own blockade of Iranian ports, redirecting scores of vessels and firing on six ships that refused to comply.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
