The US has intercepted and seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, Donald Trump has said.

President Trump confirmed the operation at a meeting with business leaders at the White House on Wednesday.

“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large, largest one ever seized, actually,” he said at the start of the meeting.

It marks the latest escalation from the Trump administration, which has in recent months ramped up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

The US accuses Mr Maduro of presiding over a narcotrafficking operation in Venezuela, which he denies

Tanker ‘used to transport sanctioned’ oil, US claims

Later, Attorney General Pam Bondi shared a video of the operation, confirming that the FBI, Homeland Security, US Coast Guard, and Department of Defence were involved.

She said on X that the US forces “executed a seizure warrant for a crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran”.

“For multiple years, the oil tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organisations,” she added.

“This seizure, completed off the coast of Venezuela, was conducted safely and securely-and our investigation alongside the Department of Homeland Security to prevent the transport of sanctioned oil continues.”

She did not name the vessel, what flag the vessel sailed under, or exactly where the incident took place.

UK maritime risk management group Vanguard said that the tanker Skipper – which the US sanctioned for alleged involvement in Iranian oil trading under the name Adisa – was believed to have been seized.

Trump on seized oil: ‘We keep it’

Without giving additional information on the operation, Mr Trump added during the White House meeting with business leaders that “other things are happening”.

Later, Mr Trump said that the tanker was “seized for a very good reason,” and when asked what will happen to the oil on board the vessel, he added: “Well, we keep it, I suppose”.

He also suggested that Colombian President Gustavo Petro, who angered the Trump administration by speaking at a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the UN in September, could “be next” if his country doesn’t “wise up” on alleged drug trafficking.

The US has escalated military deployments against the Latin American country over the last few months, with Mr Trump suggesting that American forces could launch a land attack on Venezuela.

On 2 September, the White House posted on X that it had conducted a strike against so-called “narcoterrorists” shipping fentanyl to the US, without providing direct evidence of the alleged crime.

Sky’s Data & Forensics unit has verified that in the past four months since strikes began, 23 boats have been targeted in 22 strikes, killing 87 people.

Read more: Is this what the beginning of a war looks like?

Geoffrey Corn, director of the Centre for Military Law at Texas Tech University, told Sky News’s Mark Austin on The World that Mr Trump’s remarks on land strikes “ostensibly” refer to drug cartel members.

Formerly a senior adviser to the US army on warfare law, Mr Corn added: “That could very easily provide the pretext for some confrontation between Venezuelan armed forces and US armed forces.

“And then that would open the door to a broader campaign to basically negate the power of the Venezuelan military.”

Read more on Venezuela:
Hegseth cites ‘fog of war’ in defence of second US strike
Most advanced US aircraft carrier close to Venezuela

Venezuela ‘prepared to break the teeth’ of US

Speaking to Politico on Tuesday, Mr Trump declined to comment on whether US troops would enter Venezuela, but said that Mr Maduro’s “days are numbered”.

According to Bloomberg, the Maduro government describes US actions as a grab for Venezuela’s oil reserves – among the biggest in the world.

Meanwhile, at a rally before a ruling-party-organised demonstration in Caracas, Mr Maduro did not address the seizure, but told supporters that Venezuela is “prepared to break the teeth of the North American empire if necessary”.

Flanked by senior officials, he said that only the ruling party can “guarantee peace, stability, and the harmonious development of Venezuela, South America and the Caribbean”.

bp pulse is continuing to roll out public DC fast charging across the US, and the company has opened its first-ever site in Arizona, along with new fast-charging locations in Texas, Florida, and Ohio.

In Arizona, bp pulse’s first site is now online at the Petro Travel Center in Eloy, just off Interstate 10 at Exit 200 (pictured). The location features 16 charging bays delivering up to 400 kilowatts, with both CCS and NACS connectors available. While charging, drivers can take advantage of the travel center’s onsite diner, convenience store, ATM, barber shop, and restrooms.

In South Florida, bp pulse’s new fast-charging site is at 2400 Miami Road in Fort Lauderdale, about three miles from Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport. The site features 16 charging bays, offering a mix of 150 kW and 400 kW speeds, with both CCS and NACS connectors. Its proximity to the airport makes it a handy stop for ride-hail drivers, EV rental returns, and airport pickups and drop-offs, with hotels, restaurants, and convenience stores nearby.

Texas is also getting more high-power charging, with a new bp pulse site at the Petro Travel Center in El Paso, located off Interstate 10 at Exit 37. This location offers 12 charging bays capable of delivering up to 400 kW, again with both CCS and NACS connectors. Drivers can take advantage of the diner, convenience store, barber shop, and restrooms while they charge.

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In Ohio, bp pulse has opened a smaller but still high-powered site at a TravelCenters of America location in Hebron, just off Interstate 70 at Exit 126. The site includes six 400 kW charging bays with CCS and NACS connectors, along with access to a convenience store, fast-food options, and restrooms.

These openings are part of bp pulse’s broader plan to build out EV charging across bp’s retail footprint, including bp, Amoco, ampm, Thorntons, and TravelCenters of America locations. Many of those sites are designed to combine fast charging with food, restrooms, and other travel amenities. bp has also said it plans to begin adding EV chargers at Waffle House locations starting in 2026.

Read more: bp pulse opens a huge airport EV fast charging hub in Houston

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Michigan fired coach Sherrone Moore for cause Wednesday after a university investigation that found “credible evidence” he was engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

“This conduct constitutes a clear violation of University policy, and U-M maintains zero tolerance for such behavior,” athletic director Warde Manuel said in a statement Wednesday.

Biff Poggi was named interim coach. Michigan is slated to play Texas in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31.

The news ends Moore’s Michigan coaching career at 17-8, with his final game a 27-9 loss to Ohio State to conclude a 9-3 season. The 39-year-old had gone through two years of his five-year contract as the Wolverines’ head coach, and the school’s firing for cause means it isn’t planning to pay the nearly $12.3 million it would have owed him on his deal.

Moore was promoted to Michigan’s head coach in the wake of Jim Harbaugh’s departure for the NFL after Michigan’s 2023 national title.

Moore endured some off-field controversies before his firing, including a suspension in Week 3 and Week 4 of this season tied to the Connor Stalions illegal advanced scouting scheme.

Moore was set to serve an additional one-game suspension for the start of the 2026 season as well. He was also suspended for the season opener in 2023 as part of self-imposed penalties for breaking recruiting rules.

Moore was a successful offensive line coach and offensive coordinator before being promoted to head coach. He was a finalist for the Broyles Award in 2023, when he was the playcaller on Michigan’s national title team.

The firing puts Michigan in a difficult position of finding a coach in the wake of what’s been considered the most volatile coaching carousel in recent college football history. There’s already been a flurry of hires and extensions, which will complicate Michigan’s search.