The tankers were part of a multibillion-dollar Iranian “shadow fleet” used to generate revenue for the IRGC and its proxies.
By United with Israel Staff
Iran launched a large barrage of ballistic missiles at a U.S. military base in Jordan after American forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers in retaliation for repeated attacks on U.S. Navy warships.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Tuesday that its forces destroyed five crude oil carriers after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the previous two days.
The American warship successfully evaded both attacks and continued patrolling regional waters, with no U.S. personnel injured, according to CENTCOM.
In response, American forces struck the Kaviz, Charminar, Horizon 1 and Riesco in the Gulf of Oman, as well as the Derya near Kharg Island, Iran’s principal oil export hub.
CENTCOM said the crews were ordered to abandon the vessels before they were struck and rendered inoperable.
According to the U.S. military, the tankers were part of a multibillion-dollar Iranian “shadow fleet” used to generate revenue for the IRGC and its regional proxies.
The strikes marked the second major American attack on Iranian oil shipping in a matter of days. On Sept. 5, CENTCOM destroyed three Iranian crude oil carriers after the IRGC attempted to attack a U.S. aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer.
CENTCOM said every Iranian attempt to strike U.S. Navy warships has failed.
Iran responded to the latest tanker strikes by firing a large barrage of ballistic missiles toward the U.S. military base at Al-Azraq in Jordan.
An American official told Al Jazeera that the attack failed to penetrate integrated U.S. air and missile defenses and caused no American casualties.
Jordanian officials said 18 missiles were intercepted, while two others landed in uninhabited areas.
The IRGC acknowledged targeting the Al-Azraq base as Tehran followed through on threats to retaliate against U.S. military installations if Iranian oil vessels came under further attack.
On Wednesday, Iranian military officials signaled that Tehran was preparing for the possibility of further escalation.
Iranian Army Ground Forces commander Ali Jahanshahi said units had been deployed along the country’s borders and were fully prepared to respond to any threat.
“For the armed forces, even a one percent threat is a complete and 100 percent threat; therefore, we are fully prepared to face all threats in any situation,” Jahanshahi said during a visit to units of the 16th Armored Division in Qazvin.
He said Iranian ground forces had demonstrated during recent fighting that they could move personnel, equipment and ammunition into position even while under fire and being monitored by enemy drones, aircraft and satellites.
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