US hands over seized Iranian vessel crew to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The United States has transferred an Iranian vessel along with its crew to Pakistan after seizing it last month in the Gulf of Oman, amid escalating tensions with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz.

According to a spokesperson for the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), the vessel identified as we naval forces intercepted M/V Touska after it allegedly attempted to violate a naval blockade imposed on Iranian ports.

US President Donald Trump had earlier claimed that American forces targeted the vessel on April 19 after it failed to comply with orders to alter its route through the Strait of Hormuz. The ship was subsequently boarded and taken into custody.

CENTCOM spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins confirmed that 22 crew members of the vessel have now been transferred to Pakistan for repatriation. “US forces have completed the transfer of 22 crew members of M/V Touska to Pakistan,” he said, adding that six other individuals had already been sent to a regional country last week.

Iranian media previously reported that those six crew members had returned to Iran after their release.

The seizure comes in the backdrop of heightened confrontation between Washington and Tehran, which intensified following US and Israeli military actions against Iran earlier this year. Since then, the US has maintained a naval blockade aimed at restricting access to Iranian ports.

Officials said the vessel was detained for attempting to breach these restrictions, further inflaming already strained relations in the region. The latest development highlights the growing volatility in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route, as tensions between the two sides continue to simmer.