The United States Army attacked three Iranian oil tankers this Saturday after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched ballistic missiles against two US Navy warships that were patrolling the waters of the region, as reported by the US Central Command (Centcom). In a statement, Centcom details that a US aircraft carrier and missile destroyer “managed to successfully evade multiple Iranian attacks” and no US personnel were injured.
Centcom assured that the three oil tankers attacked are part of a clandestine network and that Iran does not have the means to defend them. “If you fire on two of our ships, we will impose an even greater economic cost on you, sinking three of yours. We will not hesitate to destroy Iran’s limited and vulnerable oil fleet,” Centcom said in a statement.
A war that drives up fuel prices
The new US attacks against Iranian oil tankers occur while fuel prices skyrocket due to the war, which began more than six months ago, and which has interrupted traffic in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, an area through which 20% of the world’s crude oil transited before the conflict. The US organization related this rise in prices to “volatility” in the Strait of Hormuz.
