The U.S. military disabled an unladen oil tanker Wednesday, enforcing a naval blockade that has already cost Iran billions in oil revenue. A U.S. fighter jet struck the M/T Belma, a Curacao-flagged vessel, with a Hellfire missile in its smokestack. The nearly 1,100-foot long tanker was attempting to sail to an Iranian port in the Arabian Gulf. U.S. Central Command stated the vessel ignored multiple warnings while transiting international waters toward Kharg Island. This action marks the first instance of U.S. forces crippling a vessel since President Trump reimposed the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz this week.
Imperial Garrison Enforces Blockade
The naval blockade, lifted last month, was reinstated Tuesday evening. During its first iteration, between April and June 18, U.S. forces redirected over 140 compliant ships and disabled nine. The Pentagon estimated this initial blockade cost Iran around $4.8 billion in oil revenue as of May 1. Centcom reported redirecting two compliant commercial vessels within the first 24 hours of the renewed blockade. The U.S. military allowed more than commercial vessels backing humanitarian aid to pass through the previous blockade.
U.S. forces also resumed strikes against Iran at President Trump’s direction. Hundreds of targets along the coast of the Strait of Hormuz have been hit. Kinetic action continued Wednesday with two separate attacks, described by U.S. officials as efforts to prevent Iran from targeting commercial ships in the waterway.
Economic Warfare and Infrastructure Threats
Another round of strikes hit Iran Wednesday morning, targeting Greater Tunb Island near the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. forces fired precision munitions against coastal defense systems and cruise missile storage and launch sites in a 90-minute wave. Centcom claimed these strikes "further degraded Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping." These actions mark the fifth consecutive day the U.S. military has attacked Iran. President Trump warned in a Fox News interview that the U.S. would gradually expand its strikes across the nation’s infrastructure. Trump told Trey Yingst, "We’re going to hit them very hard tonight, we’re going to hit them very hard tomorrow night, we’re going to hit them very hard the night after, and then next week it gets really bad for them." He added, "Because next week comes the power plants, next week comes the bridges." Trump stated the strikes would continue until Iranian negotiators "get to the table and negotiate."
Resistance to Capital's Demands
Iran retaliated Tuesday, firing drones and missiles at U.S. bases in Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait. Alongside ramped-up kinetic action, Trump reimposed the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for oil and gas shipping. He did, however, walk back his earlier proposal of charging a 20 percent toll on all cargo passing through the waterway, which was intended to compensate the U.S. for security. This minor adjustment does not alter the fundamental projection of military power to control global trade routes and extract concessions.