Iran has launched a barrage of missiles at a US aircraft carrier and a destroyer, alleging that the two warships were harassing Iranian vessels and participating in a naval blockade against the Islamic Republic.
In a statement, Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its Aerospace Force targeted the aircraft carrier and destroyer with several ballistic missiles. The IRGC claimed that both US warships were forced to leave the conflict area after sustaining damage and fearing further attacks.
“The Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attacked with several ballistic missiles the aircraft carrier and a destroyer of the child-killing American army that were harassing Iranian ships and participating in the naval blockade,” the IRGC said, according to Iran’s state broadcaster, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).
The reported attack comes amid renewed hostilities between Iran and the United States in the region, following US strikes on Iranian oil tankers and subsequent retaliation by Tehran.
Earlier, the IRGC Navy claimed that it had targeted three oil tankers travelling along what it described as an “unauthorised route” through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, as well as three other vessels affiliated with the United States.
The IRGC Navy said the action was carried out in response to earlier American strikes on three Iranian oil tankers. According to the force, the US military had attacked the vessels, causing damage, in what it described as an attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz.
“This morning, the American terrorist and aggressive army, in a brutal act and out of desperation to close the Strait of Hormuz, attacked three oil tankers belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran, causing damage,” the IRGC Navy said.
It added that, in response, its forces had targeted three oil tankers travelling through what it called an unauthorised route in the Strait of Hormuz, along with three US-affiliated vessels in other areas.
The IRGC Navy also issued a warning to vessels operating in and around the Strait of Hormuz, urging them to avoid what it described as unauthorised waterways.
“Do not be deceived by the American terrorist army and avoid any suspicious movement to cross unauthorised waterways, otherwise you will be targeted,” the IRGC Navy warned.
