US forces seize fifth oil tanker linking Venezuela

U.S. forces have seized another tanker in the Caribbean Sea, officials said, as Washington continues its efforts to control Venezuelan oil exports.

“Once again, our joint interagency forces sent a clear message this morning: ‘there is no safe haven for criminals,'” US Southern Command said on X.

The X Post said Friday morning that Marines and sailors, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, “apprehended” the oil tanker Olina.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the Olina was “another ghost fleet tanker suspected of carrying embargoed oil” and that it was seized after it “left Venezuela in an attempt to evade U.S. forces.”

Noem posted a video online showing troops landing on a ship from a helicopter. The tanker, the Olina, is on the sanctions lists of several countries.

This is the fifth ship seized by the United States in recent weeks.

Maritime risk firm Vanguard Tech said the ship was attempting to break the US naval blockade in the Caribbean.

He added that the vessel’s tracking system was last active 52 days ago, northeast of Curacao, and that “the seizure follows a prolonged pursuit of tankers linked to sanctioned Venezuelan oil shipments to the region.”