The United States said on Saturday that its forces had struck three crude oil carriers, and Iran said it had targeted three U.S. vessels and three tankers on unauthorized routes in the Strait of Hormuz later in the day.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) fired ballistic missiles toward two U.S. Navy warships patrolling regional waters, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement, adding that no American personnel were harmed.
The U.S. military "permanently disabled" the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask, and "completely destroyed" the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo in the Gulf of Oman, according to the CENTCOM.
The statement said the Kylo was struck in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after its crew was directed to abandon ship.
The navy of IRGC said later on Saturday it had targeted three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and three U.S.-affiliated vessels elsewhere in retaliation for the U.S. attacks on Iranian tankers earlier in the day.
The three tankers that were struck in the strait were crossing the waterway through the "unauthorized" route, the navy said in a statement published on the IRGC's official news outlet Sepah News, adding the other three vessels were hit in other regions.
The Iranian navy also urged all vessels in the Gulf and near the Strait of Hormuz to refrain from being "deceived" by the U.S. Army and making any suspicious movement to transit the waterway through "unauthorized" routes, otherwise they will be targeted.
U.S., Iran exchange attacks on oil tankers
