U.S. Hits Three More Iranian Tankers After Second Attack on U.S. Warship
In response to a second attempted Iranian missile strike on U.S. Navy warships on Monday, U.S. forces have hit another three Iran-linked tankers inside of the blockade line, according to EOS Risk Group's Martin Kelly. Iran subsequently warned mariners to prepare for retaliatory strikes on GCC-linked merchant shipping.
Last weekend, Iran launched ballistic missiles at a U.S. aircraft carrier and a destroyer, striking neither but drawing a U.S. retaliatory attack, which sank one Iranian tanker and damaged two more. The latest cycle of strike/counterstrike activity began Monday when Iran "tested" a new kind of antiship missile against an unspecified U.S. Navy vessel, Iranian official Major General Mohsen Rezaei claimed yesterday (U.S. officials confirmed the claimed attack to the Wall Street Journal).
In response, U.S. forces launched additional strikes on Iran-linked tankers on Tuesday, hitting two at Kharg and one off the coast of Jask, according Kelly. The extent of the damage was not immediately clear.
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Officials told the Journal that there is increasing concern that the quality of Iran's weaponry and targeting appears to be improving, suggesting foreign assistance from one of its technologically-sophisticated partners. In May, the U.S. sanctioned three Chinese satellite and geospatial data companies for providing militarily-useful satellite imaging to Iran. The Russian government is also widely believed to be providing Tehran with high-end satellite surveillance.
In response to Tuesday's U.S. attack, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced an "urgent warning" to all tanker crewmembers off the coasts of Kuwait and Bahrain. "We warn that they must immediately abandon their vessels, whether in the anchorage or at the docks, as they will be targeted," the group said via social media channels.
