U.S. and Iran escalate strikes: Oil tankers destroyed, base attacked

U.S. Central Command retaliated on Tuesday to the latest aggression from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps by destroying five Iranian crude oil carriers in the Gulf of Oman and near Kharg Island.

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It posted on X: “CENTCOM forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers, Sept. 8, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the past two days.”

No American personnel were harmed in Iran’s latest strikes.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to reporters about the latest strikes while visiting Barranquilla, Colombia. He warned that the U.S. would continue to take action.

“Iran continues to try to hit U.S. naval ships, and for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers. And I think you’ll see that again today,” Rubio said.

Iran struck back overnight. The IRGC fired approximately 20 ballistic missiles toward a U.S. base in Jordan.

Jordan’s military said it intercepted 18; the other two fell in unpopulated areas and no casualties were reported.

On Wednesday morning, CENTCOM posted a fact-check against the claim that Iran had hit two U.S. Navy destroyers. “No U.S. Navy warship has been struck; all IRGC attempted attacks failed. Meanwhile, U.S. forces have successfully destroyed 10 Iranian tankers in just the last week.”

Leaders on both sides respond

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford, R-Ark., told Fox News, regarding the U.S. strikes on Iranian oil tankers, “This should bring them to a position of recognizing that their position currently is untenable.” He said, “They’re going to have to change their ways. This should be a pretty strong signal.”

U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth posted on X: “It’s simple: if Iran shoots at U.S. ships, we will destroy (and sink) their oil tankers. All they have to do is not shoot at @USNavy.”

Speaker of Islamic Republic of Iran’s Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, responded to Hegseth’s post. He said, “Strike our assets and you get struck. We’ve already proven it. Ask the bases that are no longer viable.”

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on X he opposed war and wanted to preserve the people’s regional security and interests, “however, just as it has boldly risen to defend against aggression up to this day, it will continue this resistance with full strength until the aggressors are brought to complete regret.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., spoke out against the war on X, pointing to the “families of the 19 U.S. service members who lost their lives or the thousands of people who have been killed across the region.