Iran says it fired warning missiles, drones at US warships in Gulf of Oman

Iran's navy announced Friday that it fired warning missiles and drones at U.S. warships in the Gulf of Oman, accusing the U.S. Navy of harassing maritime traffic and seizing commercial vessels. The statement was carried by Iranian state media.

The confrontation follows a U.S. Indo-Pacific Command announcement that U.S. forces intercepted a sanctioned, stateless vessel, the M/T DAVINA, in the Indian Ocean overnight. The U.S. command stated its commitment to "global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran."

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We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate.

Tensions have been escalating in the waters around Iran, particularly as Washington enforces sanctions on Iranian oil shipments. Tehran has repeatedly threatened shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier this week, the U.S. conducted strikes on Iranian targets in Goruk and Qeshm Island along the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for Iran downing an American MQ-1 Reaper drone.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins stated that U.S. forces conducted "self-defense strikes" in southern Iran to protect troops from Iranian threats, emphasizing that these actions do not signify an end to the U.S.-Iran ceasefire. The U.S. military had previously destroyed two Iranian ships for laying mines in the Strait, and struck a Bandar Abbas surface-to-air missile site.

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US forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces.