The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)’s Navy has announced striking three United States-linked vessels and three trespassing oil tankers in retaliation for earlier American attacks on Iranian tankers.
“This morning, the terrorist and aggressor US military, in a brutal act born of desperation from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, attacked three oil tankers belonging to the Islamic Republic, causing damage,” the force said in a statement on Saturday.
In response, “the fighters of the IRGC Navy targeted three oil tankers traveling along an unauthorized route through the Strait of Hormuz, as well as three vessels affiliated with the child-killing United States, in other areas,” it added.
Yesterday, the US targeted an Iranian oil tanker near Kharg Island with four projectiles.
Several explosions were heard on Saturday from the direction of the Persian Gulf in the area around Kharg Island, according to reports from the island.
A local source said an Iranian tanker was struck about six nautical miles from the island after being targeted by four projectiles fired by US forces.
The attack caused no casualties, while the tanker’s crew was evacuated from the vessel.
Iranian authorities said they were investigating the extent of the damage and the precise circumstances of the attack, with further details expected to be released later.
The attack comes as the US has intensified its aggression against Iran in recent days, carrying out strikes on several locations across the country.
Iran devised the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), a mechanism aimed at ensuring safe and legal transit through the chokepoint, towards implementation of the understanding, but American violations forced the country to reestablish the closure.
Tehran has conditioned reopening of the waterway on realization of a number of prerequisites, including the complete lifting of the US’s illegal naval and economic blockade against the Islamic Republic, durable cessation of aggression on all fronts, including Lebanon, and clarification of the situation concerning the blockade of Yemen.
The Islamic Republic has, meanwhile, sternly warned vessels against buying into Washington’s claims that the strait remains open, asserting that any vessel attempting to transit the waterway in reliance on such claims would do so at its own risk and would be targeted.
