Screengrab Source: X/CENTCOM

The US military released a video on Monday showing a machine gunner in a helicopter warning a cargo ship to turn back if detected near Iranian ports, as the US military continues a maritime blockade amid escalating tensions with Iran.Footage shared by United States Central Command on“This is United States Warship 115. You are entering a military blockade area. This blockade of Iranian ports will be enforced and will apply to all ships regardless of flag,” the radio warning in the video said.“Any vessel intending to enter or exit an Iranian port will be subject to the right to search and search in accordance with international law. If you attempt to escape [from] Blockade We will force compliance with force. Above.”Centcom said US forces have directed 27 ships to turn away or return to Iranian ports since the blockade of ships entering or exiting Iranian coastal areas began.The military footage comes as maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has once again been disrupted amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran.Shipping in the strategic narrow chokepoint has become increasingly restricted, according to vessel tracking data cited by AFP, with both sides imposing separate blockades that have complicated commercial movement through the Gulf region.Iran briefly announced the reopening of the strategic waterway, but the United States did not ease sanctions on ships passing through Iranian ports. Dozens of ships passed through the strait during the brief opening, before Tehran later warned that any approaching ship would be treated as a target and the route would be closed again.Since then, only a few ships have succeeded in crossing. Maritime tracking firm Kpler said only four ships had passed in either direction since Sunday. Among them was the Iranian-flagged Nova Crest, which is under US sanctions and was seen leaving the Gulf and transiting the Gulf of Oman.US enforcement of the blockade is usually implemented when ships approach Iran’s maritime border with Pakistan. Several ships have reportedly been ordered to divert or turn back, including tankers and container ships tracked in the area.Meanwhile, Iran has also moved to claim control of the strait, with incidents involving ships flagged by different countries increasing tensions in the busy shipping lane. Some ships have reported damage or been forced to divert course amid the disruptions.Tracking data also indicates that hundreds of commercial vessels remain active in the Gulf despite the restrictions, with traffic through one of the world’s most important energy corridors continuing but disrupted.The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) also released footage on Monday showing a maritime operation in which US Marines boarded the Iranian-flagged container ship Touska in the Gulf of Oman. Video shared by CENTCOM on The footage captures the tactical sequence as crews disembark from the aircraft and safely access the ship amid tight surveillance of commercial shipping lanes in the area.Iran’s Hazrat Khatam al-Anbiya military headquarters later confirmed the incident, calling it an attack on an Iranian commercial ship in the Sea of ​​Oman, and Tehran accused the US of “violating the ceasefire and committing piracy” by attacking and firing at the ship, confirming that the ship had been seized. Following the incident, the Iranian military issued a warning of retaliation, saying, “We warn that the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will soon respond to this armed robbery of the US military and will retaliate,” further escalating tensions between the two countries, which have been in conflict since February 28 and are currently under a fragile ceasefire.