A U.S. fighter jet struck and disabled a Panama-flagged cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman on Saturday after its crew repeatedly ignored warnings and tried to push through the American naval blockade of Iran, U.S. Central Command confirmed. The precision strike hit the stern of the M/V Ocean Molica, also known as Arika Sun, knocking out its propulsion system without harming anyone aboard. CENTCOM said the large cargo vessel had just left an Iranian port and was attempting to continue through regional waters when it was intercepted on October 10. No injuries were reported among the crew, and the ship was left dead in the water rather than destroyed.

The incident marks the fourth commercial vessel disabled since CENTCOM resumed its strict blockade enforcement on July 14, with U.S. forces also turning back 135 ships and destroying 10 tankers tied to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps over the same three-month stretch. CENTCOM is urging all mariners operating near the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman to heed blockade warnings, monitor Notice to Mariners broadcasts, and stay in contact with U.S. naval forces on bridge-to-bridge channel 16. The steady escalation underscores how aggressively Washington is enforcing the embargo, turning what was once a diplomatic standoff into a hard physical barrier on the water. With tensions showing no sign of easing, more vessels attempting to test the blockade could face the same fate.