US Central Command said it had launched strikes on three oil tankers linked to Iran in the Gulf of Oman, including one near oil-rich Kharg Island
The US military said it had struck three Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman in response to Tehran’s attacks on two US Navy warships in the Middle East.
In a statement issued on Saturday, US Central Command said it had "permanently disabled" one tanker near Kharg Island and another near the city of Jask, on the Gulf of Oman. Both areas are central to Iran’s oil-export infrastructure. A third tanker was "completely destroyed", Centcom said.
The command added that a US aircraft carrier and a destroyer had avoided "multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks" while operating in the region.
The statement followed reports in Iranian state media of several explosions near Kharg Island on Saturday morning, accusing Washington of targeting three Iranian oil tankers.
Kharg Island is a key hub for Iranian crude exports, handling about 90% of the country’s oil shipments. State broadcaster *IRIB *said there were no casualties in the attack on the vessel near the island, while emergency services said the resulting fire was extinguished within an hour.
The strikes follow a wave of Iranian attacks across the region targeting what Tehran says are US assets in the Middle East. Over the past week, Iran has claimed strikes on bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.
"Let the message to the IRGC be clear: if you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost by taking out three of yours," Admiral Brad Cooper, Centcom’s commander, said on Saturday.
"We will not hesitate to defend American forces and, if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet."
The US resumed attacks on Iran last Sunday after a period of relative calm between the two sides, whose negotiations had stalled.
