US Military Destroys Iranian Tankers After IRGC Attacks

The U.S. Central Command announced early Wednesday the destruction of five Iranian crude oil tankers. This action came in response to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeting a U.S. warship with ballistic missiles twice within two days. CENTCOM affirmed that the U.S. warship successfully evaded the Iranian attacks and continued its patrols without any casualties among its crew, emphasizing that all IRGC attempts against U.S. Navy vessels were unsuccessful. In detail, the destroyed tankers were identified as Kaviz, Sharminar, Horizon 1, and Resko, with four targeted in the Gulf of Oman, in addition to the Derya tanker, which was destroyed near Kharg Island. CENTCOM clarified that Iran utilizes these tankers as part of a clandestine, multi-billion dollar network to fund the IRGC and Tehran's proxies in the region. U.S. officials had announced on Tuesday the targeting of Iranian oil tankers near Kharg and Jask in southern Iran. This military escalation occurs amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran, characterized by mutual threats to target commercial and military fleets in vital waterways across the region.