US destroyer intercepts oil tankers trying to leave Iran during blockade: report

A US destroyer intercepted two oil tankers trying to leave Iran on Tuesday as part of the Trump administration’s blockade of Iranian ports, a US official said.

Official he told Reuters He said the ships left Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman before contacting the US warship via radio communications. The official added that the tankers were among six ships that US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Tuesday complied with orders for American forces to turn around and return to an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman.

“More than 10,000 U.S. Sailors, Marines, and Airmen, along with more than a dozen warships and dozens of aircraft, are carrying out the mission to blockade ships entering and exiting Iranian ports,” CENTCOM said. he said. “During the first 24 hours, no ships were able to breach the US blockade, and 6 merchant ships complied with instructions from US forces to turn back to re-enter an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman.”

“The blockade is applied impartially against ships of all nations entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman,” the statement said. “US forces support freedom of navigation for ships traveling through the Strait of Hormuz to and from ports outside Iran.”

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The Pentagon did not immediately respond Wednesday to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on the ban on oil tankers.

“U.S. Navy guided missile destroyers are among the assets conducting a blockade mission affecting Iranian ports. The blockade is enforced on a neutral basis against ships of all nations entering or exiting Iran’s coastal areas or ports,” CENTCOM said in a statement Tuesday. he said. “A typical destroyer has a crew of more than 300 Sailors who are highly trained to conduct offensive and defensive naval operations.”

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FILE PHOTO: Cargo ships in the Gulf, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam administration, near the Strait of Hormuz, United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo/File Photo)

CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper added in his statement that “the blockade of Iranian ports is fully enforced as US forces maintain maritime superiority in the Middle East.”

A satellite image shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and vital for global energy supplies. (Amanda Macias/Fox News Digital)

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An estimated 90 percent of Iran’s economy is supported by international trade by sea, Cooper said.

“In less than 36 hours since the blockade was imposed, US forces have completely halted economic trade in and out of Iran by sea,” he said.