The United States military claims it struck three Iranian crude oil tankers on Saturday, including one near Kharg Island, the terminal through which Iran shipped roughly 90 percent of its crude before the current conflict, adding further pressure to an export capacity already curtailed by a US blockade in place since mid April.
US Central Command said the strikes followed ballistic missile attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on two US Navy warships, which an aircraft carrier and a guided missile destroyer evaded without American casualties. In response, US forces say they permanently disabled two Iranian crude carriers, the M/T Downy off Kharg Island and the M/T Stark 1 near Jask, and destroyed a third, the unladen M/T Kylo, in the Gulf of Oman.
CENTCOM said the vessels help finance the IRGC and its proxy forces across the region. Iranian state television reported earlier on Saturday that a tanker near Kharg had been hit, with no casualties reported.
The strikes add to a conflict that has already effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a corridor central to global oil supply, further narrowing Iran's already reduced export capacity as OPEC's third largest producer.
Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM, warned that any future Iranian attack "would impose an even higher economic cost" on Tehran's fleet.
Saturday's strikes mark the second exchange between the two sides in under a week, after nearly a month of relative calm.