US launches new Gulf strikes, hitting three Iranian oil tankers

The United States says it has struck three Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf after Iranian missiles targeted US Navy warships, escalating a conflict that had returned to open attacks after a month of relative calm.

A US military statement issued Saturday said a US aircraft carrier and a destroyer evaded “multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks” while patrolling the region. No US personnel were hurt, the statement said. Two Iranian oil carriers were “permanently disabled,” while a third vessel, which was unladen, was destroyed.

The US military said the tankers belonged to a shadow network that helped finance Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and its armed proxies in the region. It said one tanker was hit off Kharg Island and another near Jask. The unladen tanker was struck in the Gulf of Oman. The statement also released what it described as video footage of the attacks.

Iran had earlier accused the United States of attacking an Iranian tanker near Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf. US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper defended the strikes in unusually direct terms: “We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.”

The attacks came nearly a week after the United States and Iran resumed strikes. The on-again, off-again war began with US and Israeli attacks on Feb. 28, and negotiations have since collapsed. Both sides have sought to impose military and economic costs on the other.

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We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.