US forces boarded the Marinera - originally known as the Bella 1 - between Iceland and Scotland as it was travelling north.

A Russian submarine and warship were close by, two US officials told Reuters.

The United States European Command said it had been boarded under a warrant issued by a US federal court.

Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, posted on X: "The blockade of sanctioned and illicit Venezuelan oil remains in FULL EFFECT - anywhere in the world."

Live updates: US seizes oil tanker linked to Venezuela and Russia

Why was it seized?

The US has been pursuing the tanker for two weeks since it slipped through a "blockade" around Venezuela.

It was sanctioned in 2024 for allegedly smuggling cargo for a company linked to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. The US Coast Guard tried to intercept the vessel last month but it refused to be boarded.

The ship was sailing under a Guyana flag when it left the Caribbean, but has since registered under a Russian flag.

Was the UK involved?

Britain provided "enabling support", including the use of bases, to US military assets intercepting the tanker.

"RFA Tideforce [often used as a refuelling vessel] provided support for US forces pursuing and interdicting the Bella 1, while the RAF provided surveillance support from the air," said a Ministry of Defence statement.

Sky News OSINT producer Lydia Morrish said three US Air Force special operations command planes had left Wick Airport in northeast Scotland early on Wednesday afternoon and were expected to land in Reykjavik around 3pm.

A RAF transport aircraft was also estimated to land there at the same time after taking off from RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire around 11.30am.

It was unclear what those planes were doing or if their movements were linked to the US oil tanker operation.

What has Russia said?

Before the US seized the vessel, Russia's foreign ministry said the tanker was in international waters and was acting according to international maritime law, according to Russian state broadcaster RT.

The ministry said the ship was flying the Russian flag and called on Western countries to respect its right to freedom of navigation.

After the seizure, Russia's transport ministry said "no state has the right to use force against vessels duly registered in the jurisdictions of other states".

Events come after Venezuela's president 'captured'

It is the latest tanker to be targeted by the US Coast Guard since Donald Trump's campaign to put pressure on Venezuela.

The seizure came days after US special forces launched a dawn raid into Caracas to capture Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, and take him to the United States.

He was then turned over to federal authorities for prosecution on charges involving alleged drug trafficking.

US seizes separate Venezuela-linked tanker

The US Coast Guard also intercepted another Venezuela-linked tanker in Caribbean waters, the US Southern Command said.

The vessel was the Panama-flagged supertanker M Sophia, which is under sanctions and had departed from Venezuelan waters in early January as part of a fleet of ships carrying Venezuelan oil to China.

What has Trump said?

In an all-caps statement on his Truth Social platform after the seizure, US President Donald Trump said: "Russia and China have zero fear of NATO without the United States, and I doubt NATO would be there for us if we really needed them."

He added: "We will always be there for NATO, even if they won't be there for us."

Matthew Armstrong and Daniel Washbourne were arrested today after absconding from HMP Leyhill.

Armstrong, 35, was convicted of murdering someone during a robbery in Warwickshire in 2009.

Washbourne, 40, has previous convictions for offences of false imprisonment and violence against a person, police said.

Avon and Somerset Police said Armstrong was arrested near Henley-in-Arden train station by Warwickshire Police just before midday following a sighting reported by a member of the public.

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Washbourne was arrested at around 1.30am in Bristol city centre. He was initially taken to hospital after officers found him with pre-existing injuries but is now in police custody.

Police had previously released CCTV images appealing to members of the public as they searched for the pair.

Another man was arrested by Avon and Somerset Police in Bristol on Saturday 3 January.

The 39-year-old has since been charged with escaping lawful custody and appeared in court on Monday.

He is due to attend Bristol Crown Court next month.

Alexander Boyd, also known as Sandy, preyed on the two girls while working as a social care officer at a residential unit for looked-after children in the town of Oban, in Argyll and Bute.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) said the 56-year-old manipulated both victims under the guise of friendship.

One of Boyd's victims died before his trial took place, but her handwritten statement and recorded police interview helped to deliver justice.

In November, Boyd was found guilty of four charges following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

He was convicted of two counts of assault and rape and two counts of indecent behaviour towards girls aged between 12 and 16.

Prosecutors presented evidence from Boyd's former colleagues, which detailed their concerns about his behaviour.

The staff accounts, supported by historical personnel and social work records, explained how he repeatedly failed to impose and respect appropriate boundaries.

This included him buying mobile phone top-up cards so he could maintain contact with one child and driving them both around in his vehicle.

Abuse stretched over three-year period

COPFS said Boyd went on to sexually abuse and rape both girls on various occasions between 1999 and 2001.

He was arrested and charged in November 2022.

In a statement issued via COPFS to others impacted by sexual abuse, the surviving victim said: "We should never carry the shame of what others have done to us, that shame belongs only to them.

"Our voices are our power, and silence is the only power they ever had."

Jailed for eight years

Boyd was handed a 10-year extended sentence on Wednesday, with eight years in jail and two years on licence after.

His name was added to the sex offenders register indefinitely, with a non-harassment order also granted.

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Faye Cook, procurator fiscal for high court sexual offences, said: "Alexander Boyd exploited a position of trust to systematically groom and sexually abuse vulnerable girls, who should have been safe under his care at the residential unit.

"Boyd will now face the consequences of his actions, which I hope brings some comfort to all those affected by his criminal behaviour."

Pictures showed the double-decker bus nose-first down an opening off the side of the road in Kent.

Police were called after 8am after a bus left the road at Chilmington Green in Ashford.

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Officers and paramedics rushed to the crash site to help passengers, but there were no reported injuries.

Kent Fire and Rescue Service said the bus was believed to have "slipped" off the road due to black ice.

In a statement it said: "There are no reported injuries and the cause is believed to be the vehicle slipping on black ice.

"Crews are reminding everyone to use extra caution when driving in cold temperatures as there could be black ice on the roads, so avoid sudden braking and leave plenty of space between you and the vehicle in front."

Stagecoach confirmed the incident involving one of its school buses is under review.

A Kent Police spokesperson said: "Officers attended and remain on scene to assist while passengers leave the bus and the vehicle is recovered.

"Paramedics attended as a precaution. There were no reported injuries."

Joel Mitchell, managing director at Stagecoach South East, said: "Stagecoach can confirm that an incident occurred on January 7 on the A28 in Ashford involving one of our school buses.

"There are currently no reported injuries. Stagecoach is cooperating fully with the local authorities, and the circumstances surrounding the incident are under review."

Bus and coach collide in Reading

Elsewhere, nine children have been injured after a school coach and bus crashed in Earley, Reading.

Eight adults from the bus also suffered minor injuries, as did the coach's driver, the South Central Ambulance Service (SCAS) said.

Two patients have been taken to hospital for further treatment, it added, while three adults and three children are being assessed at the scene, and the remaining 10 patients have been discharged.

It was not known if the crash was related to the weather affecting the country.

Adem Savas was also fined €400,000 (£346,000).

The 45-year-old was arrested after arriving at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam in November 2024 and stood trial in Bruges, Belgium, for alleged involvement in people smuggling operations.

He was accused of supplying engines and boats to people smugglers, shipping the boats from Turkey and storing them in Germany until they were transported to northern France.

Savas was initially identified by the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) after an investigation into Kurdish crime boss Hewa Rahimpur.

Rahimpur headed a major Europe-wide smuggling ring thought to be behind the movement of more than 10,000 migrants in small boat crossings to the UK. He was arrested in 2022 near Ilford in east London and extradited to Belgium, where he was jailed for 11 years in October 2023, a sentence later increased to 13 years on appeal.

Analysis of phones and devices seized during his arrest revealed Savas was his key supplier of boats and engines, and investigators believe he supplied equipment used in half of all Channel crossings in 2023.

The NCA said Savas was the main importer of cheap outboard engines sourced from China, the type most frequently used by people smuggling gangs in the Channel.

The agency said Savas was thought to have supplied equipment used in thousands of small boat crossings to the UK between 2019 and 2024. Charging around £4,000 on average for packages of boats and engines, he is thought to have made millions.

Criminals shared Sky News report on fatal Channel crossing

After 27 migrants died when their boat sank in the Channel in November 2021, Rahimpur sent Savas images of a white rubber boat and a screenshot of a Sky News article showing how an identical boat had been used in the fatal crossing.

Equipment supplied by Savas 'likely involved in numerous fatal events'

NCA director general of operations Rob Jones said: "Adem Savas was without doubt the most significant supplier of boats and engines to people smuggling gangs involved in organising deadly crossings in the Channel, the head of a criminal network stretching across Europe to the beaches of northern France and across into the UK.

"He pretended to run a legitimate maritime supply company, but in reality he knew exactly how the equipment he provided would be used. He also knew exactly how unsuitable it was for long sea crossings.

"Boats and engines supplied by Savas were likely involved in numerous fatal events in the Channel - he made money from each of those."

Three other defendants were sentenced to 12 and 13 years in prison in absentia, and their arrest has been ordered. They were fined €600,000 (£520,000). Savas also had $100,000 (£74,000) in assets seized.