Royalty, fans turn out for Caballe's funeral in Barcelona

Royalty, political leaders and fans are attending the funeral in Barcelona of Spanish opera singer Montserrat Caballe.

The 85-year-old Caballe died Saturday at a hospital in the Catalan capital where she had been since September.

Spain's Emeritus Queen Sofia attended the funeral Monday in the Les Corts district of the Catalan capital. Also present were Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Spanish tenor Jose Carreras and Catalan regional president Quim Torra.

FILE - In this Monday, Oct. 10, 1988 file photo, rock star Freddie Mercury, center left, lead singer of the pop group Queen, arrives with opera star Montserrat Caballe at the Royal Albert Hall in London to publicize their hit song 'Barcelona.' Spanish opera diva Montserrat Caballe, renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. Hospital Sant Pau press officer Abraham del Moral confirmed her passing away early on Saturday Oct. 6, 2018. (AP PhotoMartin Cleaver, File)

Her family said Caballe will be buried at the Sant Andreu cemetery, next to her parents.

Caballe achieved international fame as an opera singer in the mid-1960s.

Later, she performed the duet "Barcelona" with Freddie Mercury of the rock group Queen and sang on two tracks on an album by New Age composer Vangelis.

FILE - In this Sunday, May 19, 1985 file photo, opera singers Marilyn Horne, left, and Montserrat Caballe perform at the Royal Opera of Versailles Palace in Paris. Spanish opera diva Montserrat Caballe, renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. Hospital Sant Pau press officer Abraham del Moral confirmed her passing away early on Saturday Oct. 6, 2018. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 17, 2006, file photo, Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe, left, performs with her daughter Montserrat Marti, right, on the occasion of the celebration of her 50th stage anniversary in Basel, Switzerland. Montserrat Caballe, a Spanish opera singer renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. Hospital Sant Pau spokesman Abraham del Moral confirmed her death early Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018, to The Associated Press.(Georgios KefalasKeystone via AP, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 1, 2005, file photo, Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe reacts during the TV show "Bet it...?" in Dresden, eastern Germany. Caballe, a Spanish opera singer renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. (Eckehard SchulzPool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 17, 2006, file photo, Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe, with Swiss moderator Kurt Aeschbacher, not in photo, welcomes the public on the occasion of the celebration of her 50th stage anniversary in Basel, Switzerland. Montserrat Caballe, a Spanish opera singer renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. Hospital Sant Pau spokesman Abraham del Moral confirmed her death early Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018, to The Associated Press.(Georgios KefalasKeystone via AP, File)

FILE - In this May 5, 1977 file photo, together for the first time on stage, American conductor Leonard Bernstein, right, at the head of the French National Orchestra and Spanish cantatrice Montserrat Caballe during the gala concert for the benefit of cancer research at the Champs-Elysees theater in Paris. Spanish opera diva Montserrat Caballe, renowned for her bel canto technique and her interpretations of the roles of Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, has died. She was 85. Hospital Sant Pau press officer Abraham del Moral confirmed her passing away early on Saturday Oct. 6, 2018. (AP Photo)

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces boarded another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea on Friday, the U.S. military said, as the Trump administration targets sanctioned tankers traveling to and from Venezuela as part of a broader effort to take control of the South American country's oil.

The predawn raid was carried out by Marines and Navy sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, part of the extensive force the U.S. has built up in the Caribbean in recent months, according to U.S. Southern Command, which declared “there is no safe haven for criminals” as it announced the seizure of the tanker called the Olina. The Coast Guard then took control of the vessel, officials said.

Southern Command and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem both posted unclassified footage on social media Friday morning of a U.S. helicopter landing on the vessel and U.S. personnel conducting a search of the deck and tossing what appeared to be an explosive device in front of a door leading to inside the ship.

In her post, Noem said the ship was “another ‘ghost fleet’ tanker ship suspected of carrying embargoed oil” and it had departed Venezuela “attempting to evade U.S. forces."

The Olina is the fifth tanker that has been seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products, and the third since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid.

In a post on his social media network later in the day, Trump said the seizure was conducted “in coordination with the Interim Authorities of Venezuela” but offered no elaboration.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for more details.

Venezuela’s government acknowledged in a statement that it was working with U.S. authorities to return the tanker, “which set sail without payment or authorization from the Venezuelan authorities,” to the South American nation.

“Thanks to this first successful joint operation, the ship is sailing back to Venezuelan waters for its protection and relevant actions,” according to the statement.

Samir Madani, co-founder of TankerTrackers.com, said his organization used satellite imagery and surface-level photos to document that at least 16 tankers left the Venezuelan coast in contravention of the quarantine U.S. forces have set up to block sanctioned ships from conducting trade. The Olina was among that flotilla.

U.S. government records show that the Olina was sanctioned for moving Russian oil under its prior name, Minerva M, and flagged in Panama.

While records show the Olina is now flying the flag of Timor-Leste, it is listed in the international shipping registry as having a false flag, meaning the registration it is claiming is not valid. In July, the owner and manager of the ship on its registration was changed to a company in Hong Kong.

According to ship tracking databases, the Olina last transmitted its location in November in the Caribbean, north of the Venezuelan coast. Since then, however, the ship has been running dark with its location beacon turned off.

While Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law, other officials in the Trump administration have made clear they see it as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuela's battered oil industry and restore its economy.

In an early morning social media post, Trump said the U.S. and Venezuela “are working well together, especially as it pertains to rebuilding, in a much bigger, better, and more modern form, their oil and gas infrastructure.”

The administration said it expects to sell 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil, with the proceeds to go to both the U.S. and Venezuelan people. But the president expects the arrangement to continue indefinitely. He met Friday with executives from oil companies to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution.

Vice President JD Vance told Fox News this week that the U.S. can “control” Venezuela’s “purse strings” by dictating where its oil can be sold.

Madani estimated that the Olina is loaded with 707,000 barrels of oil, which at the current market price of about $60 a barrel would be worth more than $42 million.

Associated Press writers Dánica Coto in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Josh Boak in Washington, and Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, contributed to this report.

This story has been corrected to reflect that the United States has seized three tankers, not five, since Nicolás Maduro was ousted as Venezuela’s president.

FILE - Evana, an oil tanker, is docked at El Palito Port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Dec. 21, 2025. The U.S. military says U.S. forces have boarded another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea. The Olina is the fifth tanker seized by U.S. forces. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)