In a dramatic act of retaliation, Iranian forces seized the crude oil tanker St Nikolas (158,573 dwt), citing it as a response to last year's incident where the United States confiscated Iranian oil from the vessel. Iranian media reports confirm the seizure, stating it was carried out under a court order and the tanker is en route to Iran. Managed by Greece's Empire Navigation, the vessel, originally known as Suez Rajan, had loaded cargo in Iraq for Aliaga, Turkey.