The U.S. wants to confiscate Iran's tankers as war trophies
The U.S. Department of Justice is preparing to activate a long-dormant naval court (prize court) in order to simplify the procedure for the military seizure of Iranian oil tankers as prizes, Bloomberg reports, citing sources.
The initiative is aimed at strengthening the blockade of Iran and compensating for the costs associated with the conflict. At the same time, experts note that the application of such a mechanism may run into legal difficulties. According to lawyers, this is "a historical area of law that has not been tested in modern conditions."
The main venue under consideration is the federal district court of the Southern District of Texas. The choice is linked to the large petrochemical complex located in the port of Houston, where significant volumes of confiscated oil can be stored.
Prize courts are specialized tribunals that existed in international maritime law to legalize the seizure of enemy vessels and cargo during wartime, the agency explains. They were actively used in the 18th and 19th centuries, allowing a state to take trophies into its own possession and sell them. The last time the U.S. used such courts was during the Spanish-American War of 1898.
