US disables first tanker under Iran port blockade; 'Belma' hit en route to Kharg Island

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Wednesday, July 15, 2026 that it had disabled a Curacao-flagged commercial tanker named Belma that was transiting international waters of the Persian Gulf toward Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export terminal. According to CENTCOM, the vessel ignored repeated warnings while attempting to violate the naval blockade; a US aircraft fired a missile into the ship's smokestack to disable it.

It is the first vessel disabled since the blockade of Iran's ports was reimposed on Tuesday. CENTCOM said that in the first 24 hours of enforcement it redirected two compliant commercial vessels and disabled one non-compliant vessel. The move sharpens enforcement of a blockade aimed directly at Iran's oil export lifeline and could feed into global oil prices and the domestic currency market.