Iran live updates: Trump threatens 'the bombing starts' if Iran doesn't make a deal

U.S. Central Command said that U.S. forces fired on and disabled an Iranian-flagged tanker around 9 a.m. ET Wednesday in the Gulf of Oman.

In a press release, CENTCOM said the empty tanker was attempting to sail to an Iranian port after "repeated warnings."

"U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces observed M/T Hasna as it transited international waters enroute to an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman. American forces issued multiple warnings and informed the Iranian-flagged vessel it was in violation of the U.S. blockade," CENTCOM wrote in a press release Wednesday.

Officials said after the Hansa's crew failed to comply, forces fired "several rounds from the 20mm cannon gun of a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet launched from USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72)."

The shots hit the tanker's rudder, disabling its movement. "Hasna is no longer transiting to Iran," CENTCOM wrote in the release.

This is not the first time U.S. forces have fired on tankers attempting to bypass the blockade.

"The U.S. blockade against ships attempting to enter or depart Iranian ports remains in full effect. CENTCOM forces continue to act deliberately and professionally to ensure compliance," CENTCOM said.

-ABC News' Nathan Lee

President Donald Trump said he feels the U.S. is closing in on a deal with Iran, but cautioned that he’s “felt that way before with them," in an interview with PBS.

This deal could include Iran exporting its highly enriched uranium to the U.S., according to Trump.

Trump confirmed the deal would include a pledge from Iran to not operate underground facilities, though Trump followed up by saying they would be operating in "goodwill," making negotiations on the operations of nuclear facilities still unclear.

"I think it's got a very good chance of ending, and if it doesn't end, we have to go back to bombing the hell out of them," Trump reportedly told PBS. “It's getting very close. If they agree, it's over, and if they don't agree, we bomb.”

He said sending special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to in-person talks is "unlikely."

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei criticized negotiations with the U.S. in a new post on X.

"The concept of 'negotiations' requires, at the very least, a genuine attempt to engage in discussions with a view to resolving the dispute," Baqaei said.

Adding, "It needs 'good faith', then, meaning that 'negotiations' is not 'disputation'; nor is it 'dictation', 'deception', 'extortion' or 'coercion.'"

U.S. Central Command said 52 commercial vessels have been turned around by the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports.