President Donald Trump says a U.S. Naval vessel fired on an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman Sunday as it attempted to bypass the ongoing U.S. blockade of Iranian port traffic.
In a social media message Sunday, President Trump said the Iranian ship, named Touska, did not follow directions to stop. A U.S. Navy destroyer fired on the ship.
"Our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom," President Trump wrote.
According to the president, the U.S. sent a detachment of Marines to board and currently has control of the ship.
Further details were not immediately available.
The Touska was previously sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury as part of measures targeted against the Iranian government.
RELATED STORY | Trump says US negotiators will be in Pakistan on Monday for talks with Iran
The incident comes as American negotiators are set to visit Pakistan on Monday for continued talks with Iran.
Vice President JD Vance, as well as special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, would return to Islamabad for the talks, the White House said.
President Trump earlier on Sunday threatened to targed Iran's civilian infrastructure if a deal was not reached.
If Iran didn't take a new deal, he said, "the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran."
Senior Iranian officials said on Saturday that the government was not yet ready to recommit to in-person peace talks with the U.S., saying certain "maximalist" demands by the U.S. regarding Iran's nuclear program made any new discussions a "non-starter."
Iran has not yet commented on Sunday's seizure of the Touska.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
