U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) on Saturday announced that two Iranian oil tankers were disabled by U.S. airstrikes, and a third was “completely destroyed.” One of the tankers was struck near Iran’s primary oil loading facility at Kharg Island, confirming reports of explosions near the island by Iranian state media.
CENTCOM said the strikes were conducted in response to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a designated terrorist organization, launching ballistic missiles at U.S. Navy warships on patrol in “regional waters.” “A U.S. aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer successfully evaded multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks. No American personnel were harmed,” CENTCOM said. U.S. forces permanently disabled the MT Downy near Kharg Island and MT Stark 1 near Jask, and completely destroyed the unladen MT Kylo (also known as MT Noxen) in the Gulf of Oman.
