Iran seized two foreign oil tankers in the Persian Gulf Thursday, accusing them of smuggling fuel and detaining 15 foreign crew members ahead of high-stakes U.S.–Iran talks Friday in Oman.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said it intercepted the two ships near Farsi Island, claiming they were carrying about 1 million liters of smuggled fuel, Reuters reported.

The crews, made up of 15 foreign nationals, were taken into custody and referred to Iran’s judicial authorities, according to Iranian state media.

The IRGC alleged the vessels were part of an organized fuel-smuggling network that had been operating in the region for several months.

Iranian officials said the ships were identified through intelligence monitoring and seized during coordinated naval operations in the Persian Gulf, a vital artery for global energy markets.

According to The Jerusalem Post, Iranian authorities framed the operation as a significant blow to illegal fuel trafficking, though they did not immediately disclose the vessels’ nationalities or destinations.

The seizures come as Iranian rhetoric toward the U.S. has grown hostile.

Ezzatollah Zarghami, a former Iranian minister and ex–state broadcaster chief, issued a warning, threatening violence in the Strait of Hormuz, through which around one-fifth of the world’s oil and petroleum product consumption passes.

‘I am sure that the Strait of Hormuz will be the place of massacre and hell for the U.S.,’ Zarghami said Thursday.

‘Iran will show that the Strait of Hormuz has historically belonged to Iran. The only thing the Americans can think of is playing with their vessels and moving them from one place to another.’

Zarghami later repeated the threat, calling the Strait a potential ‘killing field’ for American forces and signaling Iran’s willingness to escalate amid mounting regional pressure.

Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet Iranian officials in Oman Friday.

The pair are traveling from Abu Dhabi after two days of talks related to Russia and Ukraine.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Thursday that Friday’s talks were still on, stating ‘diplomacy is always [Trump’s] first option.’

President Donald Trump has warned that the U.S. could use military force to secure the Diego Garcia air base in the Chagos Islands if any future deal threatens access to the joint U.S.-U.K. installation.

Trump made the comments Thursday in a Truth Social post while also signaling his willingness to move past tensions with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after what he described as ‘very productive discussions’ about the Indian Ocean base.

Emphasizing the base’s strategic importance, Trump said the role of Diego Garcia was essential to U.S. national security.

‘It is the site of a major U.S. military base, strategically situated in the middle of the Indian Ocean and, therefore, of great importance to the national security of the United States,’ Trump wrote.

Trump also acknowledged that the U.K. struck what he called ‘the best deal he could make’ under a controversial agreement to transfer sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius while leasing Diego Garcia back for at least 99 years.

‘However, if the lease deal, sometime in the future, ever falls apart, or anyone threatens or endangers U.S. operations and forces at our base, I retain the right to militarily secure and reinforce the American presence in Diego Garcia,’ Trump warned.

‘Let it be known that I will never allow our presence on a base as important as this to ever be undermined or threatened by fake claims or environmental nonsense.’

The comments marked a slight shift in tone from Trump, who in January criticized the U.K.-Mauritius deal as an ‘act of great stupidity’ and an ‘act of total weakness,’ accusing Britain of surrendering a critical military asset.

Diego Garcia serves as a hub for long-range bombers, logistics, intelligence collection and military communications across the Middle East, the Indo-Pacific and Africa, hosting around 2,500 U.S. and military and civilian personnel.

The island base has been used for long-range U.S. operations such as in Afghanistan and in Yemen.

According to Reuters, Downing Street had confirmed Trump and Starmer discussed Diego Garcia during a recent call and agreed to safeguard the base’s continued operation.

‘Turning to Diego Garcia, and the deal the U.K. has secured to maintain control of the U.S.-U.K. military base to protect national security, the leaders recognized its strategic importance,’ a No. 10 spokeswoman said.

‘The leaders agreed their governments would continue working closely to guarantee the future operation of the base and speak again soon.’

Under the agreement, British taxpayers are projected to pay roughly £35 billion [$47 billion] over the next century, including annual payments of about £160 million [$216 million] to Mauritius, according to public estimates.

Britain has also agreed to approximately £3 billion [$4 billion] in compensation over the life of the deal, with an option to extend the lease for an additional 50 years.

The agreement has also drawn criticism from Britain’s Conservative Party, which argues the deal weakens the U.K.’s strategic position and risks undermining long-standing security ties with the U.S.

Mauritius has said its sovereignty over the islands is ‘unequivocally recognized’ under international law and has called for swift implementation of the agreement.

As previously reported by Fox News Digital, a Downing Street spokesperson also said in January the U.K. is continuing efforts to ‘allay any concerns’ in Washington.

‘We will continue to engage with the U.S. on this important matter and the importance of the deal to secure U.S. and U.K. interests,’ the spokesperson said. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House and Downing Street for comment.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is urging U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to launch an investigation into Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson over her attendance at the Grammy Awards on Sunday amid anti-ICE rhetoric from celebrities and artists at the event. 

Jackson was in attendance at this year’s politically-charged event because of her nomination for narrating the audiobook version of her memoir, ‘Lovely One.’ 

However, critics said Jackson clapped as various speakers criticized U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

‘While it is by no means unheard of or unusual for a Supreme Court justice to attend a public function, very rarely—if ever—have justices of our nation’s highest Court been present at an event at which attendees have amplified such far-left rhetoric,’ Blackburn wrote in a letter to Roberts. 

Blackburn, who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, called for an investigation into whether Jackson’s actions violate the high court’s Code of Conduct and would require her to recuse herself from certain cases. 

‘To that end, in the interest of a fair-minded, impartial, and independent federal judiciary, I urge you to initiate an investigation into Justice Jackson’s attendance at this event and if her participation in any way would require recusal from matters that will come before the Court,’ her letter states. 

Attendees at the awards were seen wearing ‘ICE Out’ lapel pins, and some winners spewed anti-ICE rhetoric such as ‘No one is illegal on stolen land’ and ‘F— ICE.’

Jackson’s appearance at the event raises questions considering the court is slated to take on cases revolving around the Trump administration, including birthright citizenship and immigration. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to Blackburn’s office and the Supreme Court. 

In her letter, Blackburn noted that Democrats and the news media have smeared Republican-appointed justices to the court as ‘corrupt’ and ‘partisan.’

She recalled how Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-RI., wrote a letter to Roberts urging him to ensure that conservative Justice Samuel Alito would recuse himself from cases related to the 2020 election and Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot because his wife put up a Revolutionary War-era flag at their home.

‘Unlike these meritless claims against Justice Alito and Justice Thomas, there are serious questions regarding Justice Jackson’s participation in such a brazenly political, anti-law enforcement event and her ability to remain an impartial member of the Supreme Court,’ Blackburn wrote. 

President Donald Trump on Thursday called for U.S. nuclear experts to begin work on what he described as a ‘new, improved, and modernized Treaty,’ arguing that the United States should move away from extending the existing New START nuclear arms agreement.

Trump made the remarks in a post on Truth Social as the administration weighs the future of U.S. nuclear arms control policy and whether it will seek to extend or replace New START, the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty between Washington and Moscow.

‘Rather than extend ‘NEW START’ (A badly negotiated deal by the United States that, aside from everything else, is being grossly violated), we should have our Nuclear Experts work on a new, improved, and modernized Treaty that can last long into the future,’ Trump wrote.

‘The president wants to have our nuclear experts work on a new, improved and modernized treaty that can last long into the future,’ White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing.  ‘And that’s what the United States will continue to discuss with the Russians.’

Trump also made broader claims in his post about his role in preventing nuclear conflict, writing that he stopped ‘Nuclear Wars from breaking out across the World between Pakistan and India, Iran and Israel, and Russia and Ukraine.’

A White House official told Fox News that the Trump administration is still weighing next steps on nuclear arms control and that no final decision has been announced.

‘The President will decide the path forward on nuclear arms control, which he will clarify on his own timeline,’ the official said.

The official added that Trump ‘has spoken repeatedly of addressing the threat nuclear weapons pose to the world and indicated that he would like to keep limits on nuclear weapons and involve China in arms control talks.’

Axios reported Thursday that U.S. and Russian officials have been discussing whether both sides could continue to observe the terms of New START after its expiration, citing multiple sources familiar with the talks. The outlet reported that no formal extension has been approved and that any arrangement would not be legally binding.

In his Truth Social post, Trump wrote that the U.S. should pursue a new agreement rather than extend New START.

According to the Associated Press, New START’s expiration leaves no caps on the U.S. and Russia’s nuclear arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Trump has made clear that future arms control efforts must include China, telling reporters that ‘in order to have true arms control in the 21st century, it’s impossible to do something that doesn’t include China because of their vast and rapidly growing stockpile.’