The United States and Iran have exchanged retaliatory strikes on each other's vessels, marking another escalation after fighting resumed a week ago following a month of relative calm. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a post on social media platform X that it had struck three Iranian oil tankers in response to ballistic missile launches by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) at two American warships. "An American aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer successfully avoided numerous unprovoked attacks from Iran. No US personnel were injured. Following Iran's failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled IRGC tankers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask. American forces also completely destroyed the unloaded tanker M/T Kylo (also known as 'Noxen') in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in several critical locations, rendering it inoperable after the crew was ordered to abandon ship," the statement said, as reported by infohub.kz.
According to CENTCOM, the targeted Iranian oil tankers are part of a multi-billion-dollar shadow fleet that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies. It claims Iran lacks the means to protect them. "Let the message to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps be clear: if you fire on two of our ships, we will inflict even greater economic damage by destroying three of yours. We will not hesitate to defend American forces and, if necessary, will destroy Iran's limited and vulnerable oil fleet," said General Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command.
As reported by the BBC, Iranian state media confirmed the strikes and said that in response, Tehran attacked three US-linked vessels and three oil tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz on an "unauthorized" route. Additionally, according to RIA Novosti, after the US strikes, the official representative of the central headquarters of the Khatam al-Anbiya military command, Ebrahim Zolfaghari, made a statement. "We warn the US military that if it continues its atrocities and harassment of Iranian vessels, endangering them, and continues the naval blockade of Iran, then the strikes of the Iranian armed forces on US military ships in the Middle East will become even stronger than before," Zolfaghari said, as quoted by Iran's Fars news agency.