US military attacks and destroys three Iranian crude oil tankers, Revolutionary Guard claims retaliation

The U.S. Central Command announced on the 5th that it attacked and destroyed three Iranian crude oil tankers near Kharg Island, Iran's main crude oil shipping hub. Iran's elite military organization, the Revolutionary Guards, later claimed that it attacked U.S.-related ships and other vessels in "retaliation." There is a possibility that conflict between Iran, which claims control of the Strait of Hormuz, and the US military, which continues to blockade Iran, could continue.

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According to the Central Command, the Revolutionary Guard fired a ballistic missile at an aircraft carrier and a destroyer that were on patrol in the area. The aircraft carrier and other aircraft avoided the attack, and there were no casualties on the American side.

Based on this, the US military attacked one tanker each off the coast of Kharg Island, near Jask, a port city in southeastern Iran located east of the Strait of Hormuz, and in the Gulf of Oman. Two ships were "permanently inoperable" and one was "completely destroyed." Commander Cooper of Central Command emphasized that, ``If necessary, we will not hesitate to destroy Iran's defenseless oil fleet.''

After the Central Command's announcement, Iran's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying it "strongly condemns the United States' belligerent actions" against civilian ships. The Revolutionary Guards said it had "targeted" three oil tankers transiting through the strait, which Iran does not approve of, and three U.S.-linked vessels in separate waters.