Tehran retaliates after US attack on Iranian tankers

Iran has warned ships not to use routes it has not approved after launching attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and elsewhere, according to foreign news agencies.

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unauthorized routes

The attacks followed a US strike on Iranian tankers near Kharg Island. Iran said it targeted three tankers traveling through “unauthorized routes” in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as three vessels linked to the United States in other areas. Tehran also accepted responsibility for an attack on a US drone in the strait.

Iranian news agency Fars reported that ballistic missiles had targeted a US aircraft carrier and a US Navy destroyer on Saturday. The Revolutionary Guard said it attacked “an unmanned American military vessel that was attempting to enter the protected area of the Strait of Hormuz.”

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an unmanned American military vessel that was attempting to enter the protected area of the Strait of Hormuz

The US military command said its earlier attack had “permanently disabled” two Iranian tankers and “completely destroyed” a third. It said the vessels formed part of a “hidden network” that allegedly provided billions of dollars to the Revolutionary Guard and its allies.

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permanently disabled

The Revolutionary Guard confirmed that the US attack had damaged “three tankers owned by the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Strait of Hormuz” and called it “an act of desperation because of the closure” of the strategic trade route. Iran’s Foreign Ministry described the attack on Iranian commercial ships in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman as a violation of the UN Charter and a war crime. The new exchanges came as efforts to end the Middle East conflict stalled and Washington tightened pressure on Tehran.

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an act of desperation because of the closure