The U.S. military said it had destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers near Kharg Island. According to U.S. Central Command, the strikes came in response to attempts by the IRGC to attack U.S. Navy vessels.
The U.S. military destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers, U.S. Central Command said. According to the command, the strikes were carried out on Tuesday near Iran’s Kharg Island.
According to China Daily, U.S. forces ordered the crews to leave the vessels before carrying out the strikes. The statement also said that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had launched attacks against U.S. military vessels over the previous two days, but a U.S. warship managed to evade ballistic missiles and continued patrolling in the region.
On Saturday, according to the command, the U.S. military destroyed three more Iranian oil tankers after the IRGC attempted to attack a U.S. aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer. The United States said all attempts to attack U.S. Navy vessels had failed.
U.S. media, citing administration officials, reported that the latest strikes were part of a campaign to pressure Iran’s economy, which is heavily dependent on crude oil exports.
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