The US military says it has struck three Iran-linked oil tankers after ballistic missiles were fired at two American warships in the Gulf region, marking a sharp escalation in the ongoing conflict between Washington and Tehran. US Central Command said its forces evaded the attacks, attributed to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and that no American personnel were harmed, while responding by disabling or destroying the tankers in retaliation.

Centcom said it "permanently disabled" one tanker near Kharg Island and another near the Strait of Hormuz, while "completely destroying" a third in the Gulf of Oman; Iranian state media confirmed a tanker was hit off Kharg Island. Centcom commander Admiral Brad Cooper warned that any future attacks on US ships would prompt further strikes on Iran's oil fleet. The incident follows renewed hostilities nearly a week after a month of relative calm, in a war that began when the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on 28 February, prompting Iranian retaliation against Israel, US bases and Gulf allies, and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.