‘Missiles, drones locked on US targets’: Iran warns of ‘heavy assault’ after tanker strikes in Gulf of Oman
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Saturday warned that any additional assaults on Iranian oil tankers or industrial vessels within the Strait of Hormuz would set off a “heavy assault” on American navy property and ships within the area, amid escalating tensions between Tehran and Washington within the Persian Gulf.In an announcement posted on X, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy Command stated, “Warning! Any aggression in opposition to Iran’s oil tankers and industrial vessels will lead to a heavy assault in opposition to one of many American centres within the area and the enemy’s ships.”
Shortly afterward, the IRGC Aerospace Drive claimed that Iranian missiles and drones have been already concentrating on US navy property and naval vessels within the area.“IRGC Aerospace Drive missiles and drones have locked onto American targets within the area and the enemy aggressor’s ships. We’re awaiting the order to fireplace,” the submit learn.The warning got here a day after america Central Command stated US naval forces disabled two Iranian-flagged oil tankers within the Gulf of Oman as a part of ongoing blockade operations in opposition to Iran.In response to CENTCOM, the unladen tankers M/T Sea Star III and M/T Sevda have been prevented from reaching Iranian ports after a US Navy F/A-18 Tremendous Hornet working from the USS George H.W. Bush fired precision munitions into the vessels’ smokestacks.CENTCOM stated US forces have disabled 4 Iranian vessels since April 13 and redirected 58 industrial ships through the blockade interval.The newest developments observe an trade of fireplace earlier this week between American naval forces and Iranian property close to the Strait of Hormuz, a key international power transit route.US President Donald Trump on Thursday confirmed that three US Navy destroyers had come beneath assault whereas transiting the strait, however stated the vessels handed by efficiently.In a submit on Reality Social, Trump stated the destroyers “transited very efficiently” regardless of being fired upon by Iranian forces. He additionally claimed Iranian naval boats concerned within the confrontation have been “utterly destroyed” and stated missiles and drones concentrating on the US ships had been intercepted.Iranian media, citing the IRGC, individually reiterated the warning on Saturday, saying any assault on Iranian tankers would result in retaliation in opposition to “American centres within the area and enemy ships.”The Strait of Hormuz stays one of many world’s most strategically necessary maritime chokepoints, carrying a serious share of worldwide oil shipments.
