By Focus and AFP | 2026-04-23

WASHINGTON -- The US Department of War said US forces boarded the sanctioned, Iran-linked tanker M/T Tifani in the Indian Ocean as part of Washington's efforts against networks providing support to Iran.

"Overnight, US forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding of the stateless, sanctioned M/T Tifani without incident in the INDOPACOM area of responsibility," the department posted on its X page on April 21.

INDOPACOM is the US Indo-Pacific Command, which oversees a broad region that includes the Pacific and Indian oceans.

The exact location of the operation was not made clear. The Tifani is a "Botswana-flagged tanker," according to the intelligence firm Vanguard Tech, which said the vessel was intercepted in the Indian Ocean. Its last signal was detected on April 21 halfway between Sri Lanka and the Strait of Malacca, according to the tracking website Marine Traffic.

"International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels," the Pentagon said in its post, which included video footage showing helicopters hovering just above a large, bright orange tanker.

"As we have made clear, we will pursue global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran—anywhere they operate," the Pentagon declared.

Dark fleet navigation risks

According to energy intelligence firm Kpler, the vessel had loaded approximately two million barrels of crude on Iran's Kharg Island on April 5 and passed through the Strait of Hormuz on April 9. Its tracking signal indicated it was heading toward Singapore.

The operation was announced hours before the initial scheduled expiration of the ceasefire between the US and Iran -- a deadline Trump said in a social media post he would extend at Pakistan's request until negotiations between the two countries are concluded.

The tanker is believed to be part of the so-called "dark fleet," making repeated voyages between the Persian Gulf and waters off Malaysia and Singapore, where ship-to-ship transfers are commonly used to obscure cargo origins and evade sanctions.

Fox News, citing Ukrainian military intelligence, said the Tifani had engaged in "dark activity" near Singapore and had a history of switching off its Automatic Identification System (AIS).

Such behavior, commonly known as "going dark," can heighten navigation risks because the International Maritime Organization requires ships of more than 300 gross tons on international voyages to keep AIS operating at all times.

Global enforcement

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters at the Pentagon on April 16 that US forces in other areas of responsibility "will actively pursue any Iranian-flagged vessel or any vessel attempting to provide material support to Iran."

He singled out the Pacific as a priority zone and made clear the US intended to interdict ships that had departed before the blockade formally took effect outside the Strait of Hormuz.

The Pentagon separately published a notice establishing the scope of goods subject to seizure, covering all merchant vessels "regardless of location." The notice declared that "goods that are destined for an enemy and that may be susceptible to use in armed conflict" are "subject to capture at any place beyond neutral territory."

US Central Command reported that 27 ships trying to enter or exit Iranian ports had been turned back in the week since the blockade outside the Strait of Hormuz was imposed.

The Pentagon classified the Tifani as "stateless" despite it sailing under a Botswana flag. The State Department said last July that ENSA Ship Management, which is linked to Tifani, was designated for "knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petroleum or petroleum products from Iran."

A Broader Pattern

Washington’s sustained enforcement campaign has driven the "dark fleet" model to "collapse abruptly," maritime intelligence company Windward reported in February, with not a single dark fleet tanker successfully delivering cargo to a final destination since mid-December.

India has also stepped up enforcement, seizing three US-sanctioned tankers linked to Iran in February and deploying some 55 coast guard ships and at least 10 aircraft to prevent its waters from being used for ship-to-ship transfers that disguise cargo origins.

The Tifani boarding extends that crackdown into INDOPACOM waters, reflecting Washington's broader push against Iran-linked shipping. The Department of War said it "will continue to deny illicit actors and their vessels freedom of maneuver" in the maritime domain.