Iran's navy on Friday, 8 May seized an oil tanker named "Ocean Koi" in the Gulf of Oman, accusing it of attempting to disrupt the country's oil exports by exploiting regional circumstances. The seizure came amid a sharp escalation of naval confrontations between Tehran and Washington near the Strait of Hormuz, with both sides trading conflicting accounts of attacks on each other's vessels.

The Ocean Koi Seizure

The Iranian army stated that the Ocean Koi was carrying Iranian oil and had allegedly designed a "special operation" to harm Iran's national interests. Naval forces directed the tanker to Iran's southern coasts and handed it over to Iran's judicial authorities, according to the army's statement.

US Forces Disable Two Tankers

The US Central Command stated that US forces disabled M/T Sea Star III and M/T Sevda on 8 May, prior to both vessels entering an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman, which it said was in violation of an ongoing US blockade. A US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet from USS George H.W. Bush disabled both tankers by firing precision munitions into their smokestacks, preventing the vessels from reaching port.

Iran Claims Missile Response, US Denies Escalation

In a separate statement, the Iranian army claimed its naval forces targeted US destroyers with cruise missiles, rockets, and combat drones during the preceding hours, describing the action as a response to alleged US attacks on Iranian oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and in Iran's territorial waters. According to the statement, the destroyers changed course and left the area. Washington, however, said it has no intention of escalation and maintained that an April 8 ceasefire between the warring parties still holds.

Tehran Condemns Attacks, Cites Ceasefire Breach

The Iranian Foreign Ministry on Friday strongly condemned the overnight US attacks, calling them a violation of the April 8 ceasefire. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi slammed the US choice of what he termed a "reckless military adventure" when, in his words, "a diplomatic solution is on the table." Writing on social media platform X, Araghchi asserted that Iranians "never bow to pressure" and that "diplomacy is always the victim." He also claimed that Iran's missile inventory and launcher capacity now stand at 120 per cent of earlier levels, reportedly exceeding estimates provided by the US intelligence community.

Airstrikes Claim and Regional Dimension

Iran additionally claimed that the US conducted airstrikes on its southern cities and the capital, Tehran, in cooperation with unspecified regional states — an allegation that has not been independently verified. The competing claims underscore the fragility of the April ceasefire framework and raise questions about whether the diplomatic track can survive continued naval confrontations. With both sides asserting their positions, the situation in the Gulf of Oman and around the Strait of Hormuz remains volatile as of Friday evening.