US and Iran trade retaliatory attacks on ships as conflict flares

On Saturday, the United States and Iran engaged in retaliatory attacks on ships, escalating tensions following a week of conflict following a month of relative calm. The US military claimed to have permanently disabled two Iran-linked oil tankers and completely destroyed a third in the Gulf of Oman. Iran's state media confirmed the strikes and stated that Tehran had targeted three US-affiliated vessels as well as three oil tankers traveling through the Strait of Hormuz via an unauthorized route.

The BBC sought comment from US Central Command (Centcom) regarding Iran's assertions of targeting US ships. The conflict comes a day after President Donald Trump downplayed the situation as "small potatoes" and dismissed any progress toward ending the six-month war. Trump has not commented on Saturday's attacks.

The news of Iran's retaliation emerged shortly after Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth tweeted on social media, "It's simple: if Iran shoots at US ships, we will destroy (and sink) their oil tankers." Centcom reported that two US warships had been previously targeted by Iran before the American retaliation, successfully evading the attacks which targeted a US aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer. No American personnel were harmed in these incidents.

Centcom stated that the three Iranian oil tankers hit were part of a multi-billion-dollar shadow network that funds the Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its regional proxies. A map of the Gulf region highlighted the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway connecting the Gulf to the Gulf of Oman. Iran's state media outlet Irib reported no casualties in the US attack on the tanker near Kharg Island, a key terminal for Iran's oil exports.

The crews of the two attacked tankers were rescued in lifeboats, with one being empty and the other carrying oil, according to Irib.

Iran's IRGC retaliated against six ships in the region, targeting three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and three US-affiliated vessels in other areas. The IRGC claimed these tankers were using unauthorized routes through the strait and warned others not to do so. The strait, crucial to the global oil and gas industry, has been effectively closed since the war began in February, becoming a significant leverage point for Iran.

Iran has insisted on retaining some control over the waterway and has previously targeted vessels using a southern route through Omani waters, avoiding its preferred route through Iranian waters.

Despite the Iranian attacks, Trump declared the Strait of Hormuz "open" and the US military has been assisting ships in navigating the southern route. Following the period of relative calm, the US resumed attacks last Sunday, targeting two rocket launchers to prevent them from laying naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. On Tuesday, Trump announced a "very heavy attack," but claimed the renewed fighting would not last "too long."

These strikes prompted Iran's retaliation against US targets in the region, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan.

On Thursday, US Vice-President Kamala Harris expressed skepticism over Iran's claims that American strikes killed at least four people, including two children at a wedding in southern Iran. She said the US would investigate the incident. A humanitarian group, the Iranian Red Crescent Society, reported that shrapnel from a missile hit a family event at a home in Sirik, prompting Tehran to declare it a "war crime."