All accounts place the exchange of fire on the night of September 5-6, 2026: IRGC ballistic missiles targeting a US aircraft carrier and destroyer, followed by US strikes on Iranian tankers.
CENTCOM claims to have put 'out of use' or destroyed three Iranian tankers (M/T Downy off Kharg, M/T Stark 1 near Jask, M/T Kylo in the Gulf of Oman), with no loss of American personnel.
Admiral Brad Cooper, head of CENTCOM, warns that Washington will impose 'a higher economic cost' for each Iranian attack on US warships.
Where it breaks apart
— Outcome of Iranian strikes — Washington claims that Iranian ballistic missiles missed their targets and that the US aircraft carrier and destroyer evaded the attacks without damage, while the IRGC claims to have hit these same ships.
— Legal classification of strikes — The United States frames the destruction of tankers as a calibrated response to Iranian strikes, while Iran presents these same strikes as a violation of the United Nations Charter and a war crime.
— South Korean deployment to Hormuz — Washington expects a military contribution from South Korea in the Strait of Hormuz, while an Iranian official warns that such a deployment would be equivalent to entering a war against Iran.
Conflits & Securite
Washington destroys three Iranian tankers, Tehran says it hit three American ships
On Saturday, September 5, 2026, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced it had struck three Iranian oil tankers — the M/T Downy off Kharg, the M/T Stark 1 near Jask, and the M/T Kylo in the Gulf of Oman — in response to ballistic missiles fired by the Revolutionary Guards at a US aircraft carrier and destroyer.
The two accounts remain incompatible and unconfirmed independently: no neutral source has separately verified the damage suffered by each side
The US blockade
Washington has been blocking Iranian ports since April, in response to Tehran closing the strait.
The Turkish bank sanctioned
The US Treasury has sanctioned Turkish bank Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi for alleged aid to the IRGC.
Oman's refusal
Oman rejected an Iranian proposal for joint tolls on the Strait of Hormuz to avoid Washington.
Key figures
3
Iranian oil tankers destroyed or put out of service, according to CENTCOM
