US military says destroys Iranian oil tankers after missile attacks

The United States said it struck and destroyed three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, in response to attempted missile attacks on naval vessels and the latest exchange of fire since renewed hostilities flared between the two countries.

The clashes, which began with US raids last week, come as both sides remain deadlocked in a six-month war.

Why did the US strike three Iranian oil tankers?

US Central Command struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday after accusing Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of unsuccessfully firing missiles at American warships. Two tankers, the M/T Downy and M/T Stark 1, were "permanently disabled," while a third, the unladen M/T Kylo, was "completely destroyed" after its crew was directed to abandon ship.

CENTCOM said it targeted tankers linked to the IRGC, calling the vessels "part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies." Video posted by CENTCOM showed large fireballs and billowing flames after projectiles slammed into the ships.

What has the US said about the strikes?

After the strikes, CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper said: "If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost, taking out three of yours." Washington is also pressing an economic squeeze on Iran, announcing sanctions on entities with financial links to the Islamic republic to further isolate it.

Iranian media had reported several explosions earlier on Saturday near the country's major oil hub of Kharg Island in the Gulf. On Thursday, Tehran said its armed forces had attacked US military bases in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, vowing to avenge civilian deaths at a wedding it blamed on an American strike.

How has the wedding strike allegation been addressed?

US Vice President JD Vance said the alleged wedding strike, which Iran's Red Crescent said killed four people in a southern coastal town on Tuesday night, was being investigated, though he said he was "sceptical" of the reports. The Trump administration has sought to play down the significance of the six-month conflict, which has grown increasingly unpopular at home as midterm elections approach.

Vance went so far as to say he "wouldn't call it a war," claiming "right now, there is no active shooting" despite the ongoing exchanges of fire. President Donald Trump backed his comments, calling the Iran war "small potatoes" for the US and insisting "it's not a big thing."

What is the status of the Strait of Hormuz blockade?

Iran's security chief Mohsen Rezaei warned the US this week that the Islamic republic had adopted a "new strategy" against Washington that "will shatter your foundations." The US has been trying to step up pressure on Tehran over its blockade of the Hormuz Strait, through which one-fifth of world oil supplies previously flowed.

A fragile ceasefire collapsed in July after attacks on commercial ships in the strategic waterway. Trump has in recent weeks repeatedly threatened to claim sovereignty over the strait, even posting a map showing it as a "new US territory." Vance has also insisted the US would not reopen talks with Iran until it ended attacks on commercial shipping in the Hormuz.

With fuel prices threatening to cost Trump's Republicans their control of Congress at the ballot box, his administration has begun pushing the message that oil flows through the waterway are returning to pre-war levels. "Their control over the Strait of Hormuz is effectively gone," Vance said of Iran on Thursday.