On July 15, local time, the US Central Command said that the US military imposed a maritime blockade against Iran, causing an empty tanker trying to sail to an Iranian port to lose its ability to sail. US Central Command forces detected an oil tanker “M/T Belma” sailing through international waters to Halke Island. The merchant ship ignored many warnings while trying to violate the US blockade order. A US military aircraft fired a “Hellfire” missile at the ship, rendering it incapable of navigation. Currently, the ship has stopped sailing to Iran. The US side said that since the maritime blockade on ships traveling to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas was resumed at 16:00 EST on July 14, it had guided two merchant ships to comply with the requirements to change routes and stopped one ship that “did not comply with regulations.” The US military said it will continue to maintain vigilance to ensure implementation of the blockade measures.

On July 15, local time, the US Central Command said that the US military imposed a maritime blockade against Iran, causing an empty tanker trying to sail to an Iranian port to lose its ability to sail. US Central Command forces detected an oil tanker “M/T Belma” sailing through international waters to Halke Island. The merchant ship ignored many warnings while trying to violate the US blockade order. A US military aircraft fired a “Hellfire” missile at the ship, rendering it incapable of navigation. Currently, the ship has stopped sailing to Iran. The US side said that since the maritime blockade on ships traveling to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas was resumed at 16:00 EST on July 14, it had guided two merchant ships to comply with the requirements to change routes and stopped one ship that “did not comply with regulations.” The US military said it will continue to maintain vigilance to ensure implementation of the blockade measures.