US military hits 3 Iranian oil tankers after saying Navy warships were targeted with missiles

U.S. military forces struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, citing that Navy warships had been targeted with missiles, threatening to destroy Iran's limited and exposed oil fleet if necessary. A statement from the military reported that a U.S. aircraft carrier and a destroyer had evaded multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks while patrolling the region, with no U.S. personnel sustaining injuries.

The statement disclosed that two Iranian oil carriers were permanently disabled, and the third, unladen tanker was destroyed. Iran claimed the U.S. had attacked an Iranian tanker near Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf, while the U.S. reported one tanker struck off Kharg Island and another near Jask, with a third unladen tanker hit in the Gulf of Oman.

Footage of the strikes was shared by the U.S., and they occurred nearly a week after the resumption of attacks following a month of relative calm in the ongoing conflict between the two nations. U.S. Central Command head Adm. Brad Cooper declared that they would not hesitate to defend American forces and destroy Iran's oil fleet if necessary.