A U.S. military aircraft fired precision munitions at the St. Kitts-flagged M/V Huda on Nov 7, disabling the cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman. The U.S. Central Command said the vessel was struck in its stern after the civilian crew ignored multiple warnings and attempted to breach a naval blockade of Iran while departing regional waters. CENTCOM stated that it had ordered the crew to evacuate the targeted sections of the ship before the munitions were fired.
The strike marks the first time the U.S. has disabled a vessel due to Iranian links in nearly a month. Since July, CENTCOM has redirected 147 commercial ships that followed blockade instructions and has disabled five merchant vessels that refused to comply. The U.S. has also destroyed 10 commercial oil tankers associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ shadow network.
