SRINAGAR: US forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) twice targeted a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles over the previous two days, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Tuesday.
CENTCOM said the US warship evaded both attempted attacks and continued its patrols in regional waters, adding that no American personnel were injured.
In a separate post on X, CENTCOM said the Iranian tanker M/T Riesco sank in the Gulf of Oman after US forces destroyed the vessel in response to the attempted IRGC attacks. The command also released footage showing the tanker sinking and said it had been destroyed on September 8.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier that Iran would continue to lose tankers whenever it attempted to strike US naval vessels.
“Iran continues to try to hit US naval ships, and for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers,” Rubio told reporters during a visit to Colombia. He added that another such incident could be expected.
Iran’s Tasnim News Agency reported that a tanker had been hit near the anchorage area of Kharg Island, with no casualties reported and its crew evacuated.
Separately, Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB reported that two oil tankers had come under attack near the port of Jask, with their crews evacuated to shore by lifeboats.
The incidents occurred amid heightened tensions between Iran and the United States over the Strait of Hormuz, despite a memorandum signed in June that envisaged a deal to reopen the strategic waterway as a step towards a broader peace agreement.
