U.S. forces disabled the Curaçao-flagged crude tanker MT Belma in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday, firing Hellfire missiles into its smokestack as it sailed toward Iran's Kharg Island oil terminal, after President Donald Trump reintroduced a naval blockade of Iranian ports on Tuesday.
Two other commercial vessels complied with U.S. orders to change course, while a sanctioned tanker, the Fuyao, reversed course on Thursday. The blockade, previously in place from mid-April to mid-June, was reimposed following the collapse of a short-lived ceasefire.
Overnight into Thursday, the U.S. military launched a new wave of strikes against Iranian targets including Bandar Abbas. Iranian state media reported air defenses activated over Tehran and explosions in Lorestan and Semnan provinces, following earlier exchanges that saw Iranian retaliatory strikes across the region.