US Navy confirms strike on three Iranian oil tankers near Kharg Island

The United States military has confirmed it attacked at least three Iranian oil tankers near Kharg Island on Saturday, after Iranian forces launched ballistic missiles at US warships in the region. Kharg Island is a strategic hub through which about 90% of Iran's crude oil exports pass. It is considered vital to the international oil market. The US Central Command said a US aircraft carrier and a missile destroyer "successfully avoided multiple Iranian attacks" and that no American personnel were injured. The attack came after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired missiles at the two US vessels patrolling the area, according to US officials. Earlier on Saturday, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported that one Iranian tanker had been hit by four US missiles about six miles off the island. The agency said there were no casualties. Iranian authorities have not yet made any official statement about the reports. This is the first exchange of attacks between the US and Iran since July, when US strikes on Kharg Island killed at least eight Iranian military personnel. This week, Washington also attacked Iranian positions on Larek Island. The latest US attack left 19 people dead, including four at a wedding, according to Iranian reports. Tehran responded with strikes against Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. A spokesman for the Revolutionary Guard said the "terrorist aggression" would be "punished." The events come days after US President Donald Trump wrote on social media that Kharg Island was being "reduced to rubble."