US Senator Calls Strike On Commercial Ship Near Iran A 'Disaster'

(MENAFN- Khaama Press) U.S. Senator Chris Murphy has criticized a recent American military strike on a commercial cargo ship in the Gulf of Oman, calling the operation a“disaster” and questioning its cost to American taxpayers.

Murphy, a Democratic senator from Connecticut, wrote on X that the United States appeared to be using attacks on commercial vessels to restore conditions that existed before the war with Iran. He questioned why American taxpayers were spending billions of dollars on operations targeting commercial shipping.

“It seems the goal is to gain leverage to convince the Iranians to let us pay them billions to return everything to the way it all was before the war. What a disaster,” Murphy wrote.

The criticism followed an announcement by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) that American forces had disabled a Panama-flagged cargo vessel, the M/V Ocean Molica, also known as the Arika Sun, in the Gulf of Oman on Saturday, October 10. CENTCOM said the ship's crew had ignored repeated warnings and attempted to breach the U.S. naval blockade after departing an Iranian port.

According to CENTCOM, a U.S. fighter jet struck the vessel's stern with a precision munition, disabling its propulsion system. The command said the crew was not harmed. Reuters reported that it was unable to immediately reach the vessel's operator for comment.

CENTCOM said U.S. forces had disabled four commercial vessels and turned back 135 ships since resuming the blockade of vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports on July 14. The command also said its forces had destroyed 10 tankers linked to what it described as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' oil-shipping network.

The blockade is part of the wider confrontation between Washington and Tehran, which has disrupted commercial shipping and heightened concerns over energy supplies. The Strait of Hormuz, a major route for global oil trade, carried about one-fifth of the world's oil consumption before the war, Reuters reported.

Murphy's remarks highlight growing questions over the costs and consequences of the U.S. strategy toward Iran. The latest incident adds to tensions surrounding maritime restrictions, commercial shipping and security in the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz.

MENAFN11102026000228011069ID1111789888