Iran Strikes US Warships in ‘Immediate and Decisive’ Retaliation for Tanker Attack

Iranian forces delivered a swift and powerful counterattack against US military vessels east of the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, inflicting “significant damage” in direct retaliation for American airstrikes on an Iranian oil tanker and civilian coastal areas, a top military spokesperson announced. “The aggressive, terrorist, and outlaw US military, in violation of a ceasefire, targeted an Iranian oil tanker,” said Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters. He added that a second Iranian ship came under attack while entering the Strait of Hormuz, directly opposite the UAE’s Fujairah port. Concurrent with the naval aggression, Zolfaghari said US forces – operating in coordination with certain regional countries – launched airstrikes against civilian areas along the coasts of Bandar Khamir, Sirik, and Qeshm Island. In response, Iran’s armed forces launched an immediate counteroffensive, engaging American warships east of the Strait of Hormuz and south of Bandar Chabahar. “The aggressor forces suffered direct hits and were compelled to retreat in disarray,” a senior Iranian military official confirmed to IRIB on Thursday night. Media reports described the Iranian action as a “precise” missile and naval operation that forced US vessels to flee after sustaining damage. The spokesperson warned that Washington and its allies must recognize that the Islamic Republic of Iran will deliver a crushing response to any act of aggression “powerfully and without the slightest hesitation.” The escalation comes just one day after US President Donald Trump suspended the so-called ‘Project Freedom’ a 48-hour initiative aimed at forcing open the Strait of Hormuz marking what Iranian officials described as another humiliating retreat by American forces in recent months.