On Sunday, April 19, U.S. President Donald Trump said that an Iranian-flagged cargo ship named the “Tosca” was targeted and stopped in the Sea of Oman while trying to breach the U.S. naval blockade. An informed source has now shared further details of the incident with IranWire.
IranWire has learned that after several hours of repeated warnings from a U.S. warship, the captain of the container ship “Tosca”, who is an IRGC operative and known among the crew as a “protector of IRGC interests in shipping”, ignored those warnings. This led to the vessel being disabled and put the lives of the crew and mariners at risk.
Sources told IranWire that the U.S. warship’s warnings were also heard by other vessels in the area, but the captain of the Tosca, Bakhtiar Hosseinzadeh, deliberately chose to ignore them.
According to informed sources, the Tosca was hit with “specialized” and “precise” strikes targeting its steering gear and radar. The ship suffered serious damage and was immobilized, but the crew is reported to be safe.
The ship had left Port Klang in Malaysia on April 12 and was headed to Bandar Abbas in southern Iran. It was expected to reach anchorage on Monday, April 20, but was intercepted and placed under blockade by the U.S. Navy before that.
What do we know about the Sunday attack by the USS Spruance?
The last recorded data for the Tosca on global radar systems, at the time of writing, is from around 22 hours earlier, approximately 10:00 AM on Sunday, Iran time. At that point, the ship was in the Sea of Oman near the Iranian coast, likely just hours before its radar system was disabled.
An informed source told IranWire that after repeated warnings, U.S. forces “professionally” and “precisely” targeted the ship’s steering and radar, leaving it “out of order.”
CENTCOM, the United States Central Command, has released video footage showing the warnings and the gunfire directed at the Tosca. On Sunday evening, Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that the guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance intercepted the ship in the Sea of Oman. He said that after the crew ignored warnings, the vessel was disabled by targeting the engine room.
Trump also said that U.S. Marines have taken control of the ship and are now inspecting its cargo. According to him, the vessel had already been under U.S. Treasury sanctions due to “illegal activities.” CENTCOM also released a video showing U.S. Marines boarding the Tosca, stating that warnings were issued for six hours but were ignored.
Since Monday, April 13, the United States has said it will block the movement of ships traveling to or from Iran, regardless of their flag, as part of the ongoing naval blockade.
The attack on the Tosca comes at a time when, according to IranWire sources, captains of other ships have been following instructions from shipping authorities. Some have delayed their journeys, while others already on route have turned back after receiving warnings to protect their crews and cargo. “Everyone is complaining about the captain for putting the lives of these guys at risk. Other ships turn back to their positions upon the first warning and aren’t looking for trouble,” the source said.
Despite this, Captain Hosseinzadeh continued his route and stayed silent, ignoring messages from the USS Spruance, which led to the attack.
The source added that crew members refer to him as the “protector of IRGC interests in shipping.” They also said that he overworks the crew and puts them under psychological pressure through ideological checks and physical confrontations.
The Tosca, with IMO number 9328900, is 295 meters long and 32 meters wide and was carrying hundreds of containers. Based on its last radar position, it was moving at 16.6 knots in the Sea of Oman near the port of Gwadar in southwestern Pakistan.
Built in 2008, the vessel has a net cargo capacity of 54,851 tons and a deadweight tonnage of 66,432 tons. It is considered a large cargo ship and relatively young compared to much of the Iranian fleet.
Promise of Retaliation by Iran; What Happens to the Second Round of Negotiations?
Earlier, Donald Trump had said that the U.S. negotiating team was on its way to Islamabad, Pakistan. He described the talks as the “last chance” for the Islamic Republic. According to Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst, who spoke with Trump, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are heading to Islamabad as U.S. envoys to meet Iranian negotiators starting Tuesday, with discussions possibly continuing until Wednesday. This update came just hours before news of the attack on the Tosca.
The reporter said Trump called the talks the “last chance” during a 20-minute conversation, warning that if no agreement is reached, “the whole country will be destroyed,” and bridges and power plants could be targeted.
Even before the attack, reports pointed to rising tensions between the U.S. and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz. It began with a tweet by Abbas Araghchi on Friday announcing the reopening of the Strait. Trump initially thanked Iran for reopening it in a Truth Social post, but later said the naval blockade would continue until a deal between the U.S. and Iran is “100 percent” finalized. After this, several officials and media outlets criticized Araghchi. Media close to the IRGC, including Tasnim and Fars, quoted officials saying that no negotiations would happen as long as the blockade remains.
Iranian media also reported that the IRGC Navy has introduced a new shipping route near the Strait of Hormuz called the “Larak Corridor” or “Path of Authority,” which can only be used with their permission. Reports say this route lies south of Hormuz Island and extends toward Larak Island, and has been presented as a new maritime passage.
With only one day left before the two-week ceasefire between the U.S., Israel, and Iran ends, the IRGC has warned of retaliation for the attack. A video released by Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, described the U.S. action as “piracy” and said it would not “remain unanswered.”
Given the situation, it remains unclear what will happen next, whether negotiations will continue and the ceasefire holds, or whether tensions escalate again into conflict.
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