The U.S. military announced Tuesday that it had struck and disabled an unladen oil tanker bound for Iran, firing a Hellfire missile into the vessel’s engine room after its crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from American forces over a full day. U.S. Central Command (Centcom) said the strike on the Botswana-flagged M/T Lexie occurred as the ship transited international waters toward Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal. Centcom released video footage that it said showed the moment the missile struck the vessel.
Centcom said U.S. forces “enforced blockade measures against Botswana-flagged M/T Lexie as it transited international waters toward Kharg Island.” The crew had failed “to comply with directions from US forces multiple times over a 24-hour period,” the command said in a statement.
The strike is the latest in a series of enforcement actions under the U.S. naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and all vessels entering and exiting Iranian ports, which began on April 13. Centcom said that overall, six commercial vessels have been disabled and another 122 redirected since the blockade went into force.
Iran has not publicly commented on the incident. The BBC reported that it had contacted Botswana’s government for comment but did not indicate whether a response had been received.