US Tightens Iran Blockade With Over 20 Warships; 55 Commercial Ships Redirected

The US has deployed more than 20 warships to the Middle East as it enforces a naval blockade against Iran. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said US naval forces had redirected 55 commercial vessels, disabled two and boarded two others as of August 9.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), CENTCOM said, “USS Ross (DDG 71) is one of over 20 U.S. warships deployed to the Middle East supporting military missions, including strict enforcement of the U.S. blockade against Iran".

"As of Aug. 9, CENTCOM has redirected 55 commercial vessels, disabled 2, and boarded 2 to ensure compliance," the post added.

CENTCOM said the latest developments follow earlier maritime operations in which US forces allowed several vessels carrying humanitarian aid to pass through the blockade.

More than 30 ships have been permitted to transit for humanitarian purposes, while sailors aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln continue to keep its F/A-18E Super Hornets mission-ready.

"US Sailors conduct maintenance on F/A-18E Super Hornets on the flight deck of aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) to ensure carrier strike group assets remain mission ready to enforce the U.S. blockade against Iran," the post read.

"As of Aug. 8, CENTCOM redirected 53 commercial vessels, disabled 2, and boarded 2. The U.S. military has also permitted more than 30 ships to pass through the blockade for humanitarian aid," it added.

US-Iran Tensions

The blockade comes amid the ongoing confrontation between Washington and Tehran. As per Al Jazeera reports, US President Donald Trump said that Washington is only “semi-negotiating” with Tehran and will wait for economic pressure on Iran to mount.

On August 8, US Vice President JD Vance told Fox News that they are talking to Iranians. "We're talking to the Iranians, of course. We're trying to maximize the amount of oil and gas that is coming out of the Strait of Hormuz. We're just trying to make sure that we get what we need out of this particular conflict," he said.

Trump, while speaking to reporters on August 6 said that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons. He said, “I started the very important excursion into the Islamic Republic of Iran, it was a very important excursion because they can't have a nuclear weapon, otherwise the whole world would get blown up. We're not going to let that happen. Not only us, not only the Middle East, the whole world would have been... it would have been catastrophic. We had no choice.”

Meanwhile, Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Iran has shown their capability to the world’s most expensive military.