Iran's Army Navy has struck American destroyers with cruise missiles and combat drones near the Strait of Hormuz after US forces attacked Iranian oil tankers in violation of a ceasefire, forcing them to flee the area.
In a statement Friday, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army announced that its naval forces attacked American destroyers Thursday night “using various missiles, combat drones, and rockets,” after the aggressor vessels “in violation of the ceasefire, assaulted Iranian oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and in territorial waters.”
The statement added that following the response, “the aggressor American destroyers changed course and left the area.”
The operation came after a series of US military attacks on Iranian ships and port areas. According to a statement by a spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the “aggressive, terrorist, and outlaw” US military targeted an Iranian oil tanker transiting from the Jask coastal region toward the Strait of Hormuz.
In a separate but simultaneous incident, another Iranian vessel came under attack while entering the strait, directly opposite the UAE's Fujairah port.
Concurrent with the tanker strikes, US forces, operating in coordination with regional allies, launched airstrikes against civilian areas along Iran's southern coastline, hitting locations near Bandar Khamir, Sirik, and Qeshm Island, the spokesperson said.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Navy offered a more detailed account of the retaliatory operation, describing it as a “highly extensive and precise combined operation” launched in response to the tanker attack near Jask and the subsequent advance of US destroyers toward the strait despite “clear warnings.”
The IRGC Navy commander said Iranian forces deployed anti-ship ballistic missiles, anti-ship cruise missiles, and destructive drones, all equipped with high-explosive warheads, firing them “directly at the enemy destroyers.”
Intelligence monitoring conducted after the strike confirmed “significant damage” to American military assets, the commander said, adding that three US vessels “fled the Strait of Hormuz area immediately” in the face of Iranian firepower.
Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari had earlier warned that Iran would “deliver a crushing response to any act of aggression or violation powerfully and without the slightest hesitation.”
Foreign Ministry's warning
As the military statements circulated, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ismail Baghaei took to X with a pointed message directed at Washington and its regional allies
“If you see a lion's fangs bared, do not assume the lion is smiling,” he wrote in an Arabic post.
Press TV’s website
