IBNS-CMEDIA: U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers on September 8 after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the preceding two days, according to CENTCOM.
The U.S. warship successfully evaded the attempted Iranian attacks and continued to patrol regional waters.
“No American personnel were harmed,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
“In response to Iran’s most recent failed attacks, CENTCOM destroyed the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Kaviz, M/T Charminar, M/T Horizon 1 and M/T Riesco in the Gulf of Oman, as well as M/T Derya near Kharg Island. American forces directed the crews to abandon ship before the vessels were struck and rendered inoperable,” the statement said.
CENTCOM alleged that Iran had used the tankers as part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network to fund the IRGC and its regional proxies. It also said Iran had no means to defend the vessels.
On September 5, CENTCOM said its forces had destroyed three Iranian crude oil carriers after the IRGC attempted to attack a U.S. aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer.
“All IRGC attempts against U.S. Navy warships have failed,” CENTCOM said.
The strikes came amid heightened tensions in the Gulf region in recent days.
Meanwhile, Iran said it had retaliated by carrying out what it described as “fierce missile strikes” against Al Azraq air base in Jordan, claiming that hangars used by U.S. fighter jets were destroyed in the attacks, Al Jazeera reported.
The IRGC also claimed to have launched ballistic missile attacks targeting the U.S. Navy destroyers DDG-119 and DDG-53, saying the strikes caused “significant damage” to the vessels.
In a subsequent statement, the IRGC claimed that its naval forces had targeted “2 American vessels and 8 tankers in the region, causing great damage to them”, according to Al Jazeera.
