The US military has destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers following attacks by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on a US warship, the US Central Command said in a social media post on Tuesday.
Iranian state television also reported the attacks, saying US forces struck at least three Iranian oil tankers near the southern port of Jask and Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf.
The crews were evacuated, it said. The strikes were carried out in response to two attempts by Iran to target the warship with ballistic missiles over the past two days, the statement added.
Jordanian authorities said their air defences intercepted and destroyed 18 of the 20 Iranian missiles, while the remaining two landed in open areas, according to the report. Iran responded to the US strikes by firing missiles at US forces stationed at the Al Azraq air base in Jordan, Al Jazeera reported. State TV later reported that the US military had attacked a second tanker in waters off Jask. Separately, state television reported that another Iranian tanker was targeted in the anchorage area near Kharg Island.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would not allow Iran’s attacks to go unanswered. An Iranian state television reporter in Jask said an Iranian tanker was struck near the coast of Yekbeni. It said the crews of both vessels were being evacuated by lifeboats towards the Jask coast. The crew was safely evacuated shortly after the strike, it said.
Another explosion was also heard in the area, though its source and exact location were not immediately known.
