Live updates: US Navy fired on and seized Iranian-flagged vessel, Trump says

US Navy Iran vessel: Trump confirms warship opened fire on Tehran’s tanker in Gulf seizure

Muhammad Asghar | GlobalBeat

President Donald Trump said a US Navy warship fired on and seized an Iranian-flagged vessel in the Persian Gulf, the first confirmed naval clash between the two nations since he took office in January.

The incident occurred Friday when the destroyer USS Sterett fired warning shots and boarded the vessel, according to Trump’s social media post. He gave no location, casualties, or what prompted the action.

The clash risks re-igniting the shadow war between Tehran and Washington that cooled after Trump left office in 2021. Oil prices jumped 4% within minutes of his announcement, while the Pentagon went silent when contacted for details.

Iran’s mission to the UN did not respond to requests for comment. The IRGC navy, which runs Tehran’s patrol boats in the Gulf, has yet to acknowledge losing any ship.

The Sterett, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, is part of the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group that deployed to the region last month, ship-tracking data shows. Trump wrote that “our brave sailors acted flawlessly” and promised “full details coming,” giving no timeline for release.

Friday’s seizure follows a pattern of tit-for-tat grabs at sea. Iran has held the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Advantage Sweet since 2023, while the US took control of Iranian oil cargoes bound for Syria in 2022. Both incidents passed without direct naval gunfire.

Gulf shipping brokers told reporters tanker captains were warned to stay clear of the central Gulf area on Friday morning. “We got a naval message to give 50 nautical miles clearance near Qatar’s North Field,” one Greek captain radioed from the tanker Seavigour.

Oil traders in Dubai said Brent crude jumped more than $3 to $74.80 a barrel within 15 minutes of Trump’s post. “No one knows if this is a one-off or the start of convoy escorts,” a Vitol desk manager said, asking not to be named.

The White House switchboard began transferring all press calls to national security spokesman Brian Hughes at 3:47 pm Washington time. Hughes repeated the same line: “We have nothing beyond the president’s statement.” The Pentagon press desk went to voicemail.

Iran’s state news agency IRNA carried only a short item on Trump’s claim 45 minutes after he posted, labeling it “unverified.” No military or civilian officials had spoken publicly by Saturday morning in Tehran.

The Revolutionary Guards’ navy operates dozens of fast attack craft that routinely shadow US ships in the narrow Strait of Hormuz. Previous encounters saw machine-gun bursts into the water or helicopter-borne warnings, but no confirmed exchange of fire since 2020.

A former US 5th Fleet officer reached in Bahrain said the lack of detail was unusual. “If shots were fired we would expect a NAVCENT press release within the hour,” said Captain William Urban (ret.), referring to Naval Forces Central Command. “The silence is deafening.”

US Central Command last reported a naval encounter on April 8, when it accused Iran of “unsafe” drone flights near the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt. Friday’s claim is the first public allegation of live fire and boarding since January 2016, when Iran detained 10 American sailors who drifted into its waters.

Background

The US and Iran have carried out a maritime chess game in the Gulf since President Ronald Reagan re-flagged Kuwaiti tankers in 1987. The so-called Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq conflict saw US Navy ships escort convoys and trade fire with Iranian speedboats and even a frigate, sinking one in Operation Praying Mantis.

Tensions flared again after Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal in 2018 and imposed oil sanctions. Tehran responded by seizing or harassing more than 30 commercial vessels in 2019-2021, while the US and UK confiscated Iranian oil cargoes Washington said funded Syria’s government or Hezbollah.

The last confirmed American naval boarding of an Iranian ship took place in August 2020, when special forces took control of four tankers carrying gasoline to Venezuela. No shots were reported in that incident. A month later the US briefly seized Iranian missiles bound for Yemen from an un-flagged dhow.

What’s Next

Maritime insurers will demand clarity once London and Dubai markets reopen Sunday. If the tanker carried Iranian crude, Washington could add the cargo to sanctions lists, forcing Asian buyers to find replacement barrels and pushing global oil prices higher. Tehran may retaliate by ordering IRGC patrols to board any tanker transiting Hormuz, analysts warn.

Expect satellite imagery firms to release photos of the Sterett alongside an Iranian hull within hours. Washington faces a choice: declassify helmet-camera footage to back Trump’s claim, or stay quiet and risk Tehran shaping the narrative with its own video of a “piracy” incident. Either way, every tanker captain in the Gulf will be watching the next US or Iranian warship that comes within 3 nautical miles.