US Central Command (Centcom) says it has disabled a third vessel, an oil tanker, in the Gulf of Oman.

In a statement, Centcom says it targeted the vessels after it “violated the blockade against Iran by attempting to transport Iranian oil, marking the third commercial ship disabled by American forces this week”.

Centcom “acted against [the] Guinea-Bissau-flagged M/T Jalveer as it attempted to transport oil from Iran through the Gulf of Oman”, the statement reads.

“A US aircraft fired two Hellfire missiles into the ship’s engine room after the crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from US forces.”

Centcom adds that as part of enforcing the naval blockade of Iranian ports, it has disabled nine “non-compliant” vessels, redirected 135 others and allowed 42 vessels to pass to support humanitarian aid.