American forces struck three Iranian crude oil tankers Saturday after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched [1] ballistic missiles toward two U.S. Navy warships in regional waters.
U.S. Central Command said the operation hit vessels near Kharg Island, Jask, and the Gulf of Oman, delivering direct economic punishment after Tehran’s attack failed.
According to CENTCOM, an American aircraft carrier and a guided missile destroyer evaded multiple unprovoked attacks, and no U.S. personnel were injured.
The regime fired first, missed its targets, and then watched three pieces of its oil lifeline become expensive wreckage.
CENTCOM identified the vessels as M/T Downy, M/T Stark 1, and M/T Kylo.
It said, “Following Iran’s failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask.”
“American forces also completely destroyed the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo (also known as the “Noxen”) in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after the crew was directed to abandon ship,” CENTCOM said.
The military released video showing explosions ripping through each vessel.
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Command officials described the ships as “part of a multibillion dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies.”
In other words, these were not ordinary commercial assets minding their own business, but floating cash machines for Iran’s military and terror apparatus.
Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM’s commander, made clear that attacks on American sailors would carry a steeper price for Tehran.
Cooper said, “We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.”
A U.S. official told Fox News that the IRGC cannot build more tankers, assets sitting at the center of Iran’s battered economy.
By targeting those ships, Washington tightened pressure on a regime already struggling to preserve export revenue and access to foreign currency.
Pressure is also coming from Treasury, which launched Operation Economic Outcast to choke off revenue funding the IRGC and Iranian regime.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the campaign aims to “tighten the noose and block every potential source of revenue that funds the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian regime.”
A senior Iranian source told Reuters that the country has about two months of gasoline supplies remaining as military pressure and sanctions bite harder.
Iran must import gasoline because its refining capacity is limited, while the American blockade of Iranian ports has throttled the oil exports that bankroll the regime.
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Regional governments are openly worried about the consequences of Tehran’s escalation.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged Washington and Tehran to return to negotiations, while Egypt and Oman stressed safe maritime navigation and the steady movement of trade and energy supplies.
President Donald Trump described the fight as a “military conflict” and brushed aside any suggestion that Iran had America cornered.
“I call it a military conflict because it’s small potatoes for us. It’s not a big thing,” the president said at the White House Friday.
Trump also said American operations had taken out Iranian radar, aircraft, and other systems tied to control of the Strait of Hormuz.
He characterized the strikes as intermittent and said the United States now controls the vital waterway very strongly, another warning that Tehran should not confuse restraint with weakness.
The Israel Defense Forces separately reported striking Hezbollah terrorists and weapons storage facilities in Lebanon after the Iran backed group launched a drone toward Israeli soldiers near the border.
Israeli troops shot down the drone, and the military said no soldiers were injured as the strikes removed what it called an immediate threat.
Trump argued new pipelines and overland transportation routes could reduce the world’s dependence on Hormuz, making Iran’s leverage less formidable over time.
“The Hormuz Strait is not what it used to be,” he said, pointing to regional projects capable of moving crude without relying on the narrow waterway.
Domestic energy concerns remain part of the picture, with the White House promising action after diesel reached a record $5.85 per gallon.
Meanwhile, more than 120 people were reportedly killed in Yemen as Iran backed Houthi forces pushed toward the strategic Bab al Mandab Strait, widening the cost of Tehran’s proxy warfare.