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WASHINGTON – The US Defense Department said on April 23 its forces boarded a vessel in the Indian Ocean that was providing material support to Iran, the second time it had done so in three days.
“Overnight, US forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel M/T Majestic X transporting oil from Iran, in the Indian Ocean,” it said on X.
The statement said the United States would “continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate”.
The post included footage of US military personnel rappelling from helicopters onto the deck of a large tanker.
The operation took place in the area of responsibility of US Indo-Pacific Command, which oversees a broad region that includes the Pacific and Indian oceans, according to the post, which did not provide a more exact location.
The Defense Department said on April 21 that its forces had boarded the “stateless sanctioned” M/T Tifani. The Tifani is a “Botswana-flagged tanker” and was intercepted in the Indian Ocean, according to the intelligence firm Vanguard Tech. AFP