US boards tanker in Indo Pacific tied to Iranian crude smuggling in night operation

A night-time boarding in international waters targets sanctioned vessels

The US says it carried out a night-time boarding of an Indo-Pacific oil tanker sanctioned for allegedly smuggling Iranian crude. The operation, shared by the defence department on X, was framed as part of wider global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and prevent material support reaching Iran. Washington also warned that international waters won’t shield sanctioned vessels.