US Navy seizes an Iranian-flagged ship near Strait of Hormuz and Tehran
vows swift response
[April 20, 2026]
By MICHELLE L. PRICE, SAMY MAGDY and SAM METZ
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States attacked and seized an
Iranian-flagged cargo ship it said had tried to evade its naval blockade
near the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, and Iran's joint military command
vowed to respond, throwing a fragile ceasefire into question days before
it expires.
It was the first interception since the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports
began last week. Iran's joint military command called the armed boarding
an act of piracy and a ceasefire violation, the state broadcaster said.
With the U.S.-Iran standoff over the strait sharpening and the ceasefire
expiring by Wednesday, it was not clear where President Donald Trump ’s
earlier announcement on new talks with Iran now stood. He had said U.S.
negotiators would head to Pakistan on Monday.
The uncertainty sent oil prices rising again. One of the worst global
energy crises in decades threatened to deepen.
Trump on social media said a U.S. Navy guided missile destroyer in the
Gulf of Oman warned the Iranian-flagged ship, the Touska, to stop and
then “stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the
engineroom." U.S. Marines had custody of the U.S.-sanctioned vessel and
were “seeing what’s on board!”
It was not clear whether anyone was hurt. The U.S. Central Command,
which didn't answer questions, said the destroyer had issued “repeated
warnings over a six-hour period.”
Iranian state media suggest new talks won't take place
There was no comment from Iranian officials directly addressing Trump's
announcement of talks. However, Iranian state media, without citing
anyone beyond unnamed sources, issued brief reports suggesting that they
would not happen.
Minutes after the ship seizure was announced, Iranian state media
reported on President Masoud Pezeshkian’s phone conversation with
Pakistan's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, earlier Sunday. U.S. actions,
including bullying and unreasonable behavior, have led to increased
suspicion that the U.S. will repeat previous patterns and “betray
diplomacy," the reports cited Pezeshkian as saying.
Two previous attempts at talks — last June and earlier this year — were
interrupted by Israeli and U.S. attacks.
On another phone call, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his
Pakistani counterpart, Ishaq Dar, that recent U.S. actions, rhetoric and
contradictions were signs of “bad intentions and lack of seriousness in
diplomacy," Iran’s state broadcaster said.
Pakistan did not confirm a second round of talks, but authorities had
begun tightening security in Islamabad. A regional official involved in
the efforts said mediators were finalizing preparations and U.S. advance
security teams were on the ground. The official spoke on condition of
anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss preparations with
the media.
The White House had said Vice President JD Vance, who led the first
round of historic face-to-face talks over 21 hours last weekend, would
lead the U.S. delegation to Pakistan with envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared
Kushner.
Iran on Saturday said it had received new proposals from the United
States. While Iran’s chief negotiator, parliament speaker Mohammed
Bagher Qalibaf, late Saturday said “there will be no retreat in the
field of diplomacy,” he acknowledged a wide gap remained between the
sides.
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Police officers stand guard at a checkpoint on a barricaded road to
ensure security ahead of the second round of the U.S. Iran officials
talks, in Islamabad, Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo/M.A. Sheikh)
It was unclear whether either side had shifted stances on issues that
derailed the last round of negotiations, including Iran’s nuclear
enrichment program, its regional proxies and the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump's announcement on talks repeated his threats against Iranian
infrastructure that have drawn widespread criticism and warnings of war
crimes. If Iran doesn't agree to the U.S.-proposed deal, "the United
States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single
Bridge, in Iran,” he wrote.
Iran wants to control strait until ‘war fully ends’
Iran early Monday warned it could keep up the global economic pain as
ships remained unable to transit the strait, with hundreds of vessels
waiting at each end for clearance.
Security of the strait is not free and “the choice is clear: either a
free oil market for all, or the risk of significant costs for everyone,”
Mohammad Reza Aref, first vice president of Iran, said in a social media
post calling for a lasting end to military and economic pressure on
Tehran.
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil trade normally passes through the
strait, along with critical supplies of fertilizer for the world's
farmers, natural gas and humanitarian supplies for places in dire need
like Afghanistan and Sudan.
Iran had announced the strait’s reopening after a 10-day truce between
Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon took
hold on Friday. But then Trump said the U.S. blockade “will remain in
full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the United States. Iran
said it would again enforce restrictions it imposed early in the war. On
Saturday, Iran fired at ships trying to transit.
For the Islamic Republic, the strait’s closure is perhaps its most
powerful weapon, inflicting political pain on Trump. For the United
States, the blockade squeezes Iran’s already weakened economy. Each side
has accused the other of violating the ceasefire.
Since most supplies to U.S. military bases in the Gulf region come
through the strait, “Iran is determined to maintain oversight and
control over traffic through the strait until the war fully ends,”
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said late Saturday. That means
Iran-designated routes, payment of fees and issuance of transit
certificates.
The council has recently acted as Iran’s de facto top decision-making
body.
The war is now in its eighth week after the U.S. and Israel launched it
on Feb. 28 during talks over Tehran’s nuclear program. At least 3,000
people have been killed in Iran, more than 2,290 in Lebanon, 23 in
Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli
soldiers in Lebanon and 13 U.S. service members throughout the region
have been killed.
___
Magy reported from Cairo and Metz from Ramallah, West Bank. Associated
Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.
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