US military says it turned away blockade runner trying to reach Iranian port

By Raphael Satter

May 30 – The U.S. military says it fired a missile into the engine room of a vessel trying to get through the U.S. blockade of Iran on Friday.

Here are some details: 

• In a statement on Saturday, U.S. Central Command said it fired a Hellfire missile into the engine room of the Gambia-flagged Lian Star as it was “transiting international waters toward an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman.”

• Before the attack, U.S. forces issued “more than 20 warnings” informing the vessel it was in violation of the U.S. blockade, according to Centcom.

• Centcom said the ship was “no longer transiting to Iran” but did not provide any further detail.

• Since the blockade started on April 13, the U.S. military has “redirected” at least 115 ships, Centcom said on Friday.

• U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on Saturday that the U.S. military is ready to resume strikes on Iran if no deal is reached in efforts to end the war between the United States and Iran.

• The conflict has pushed up global energy prices as Iran has mostly closed the Strait of ​Hormuz.

(Reporting by Raphael Satter; Editing by Sergio Non and Franklin Paul)