The United States and Iran have exchanged attacks on oil tankers, naval vessels and military positions as fighting around the Strait of Hormuz pushed Brent crude futures to $100 a barrel on Wednesday.
US Central Command said American forces destroyed five Iranian crude carriers after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps twice tried to hit a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles over two days.
CENTCOM said the US vessel avoided both attacks and no American personnel were hurt. US forces ordered crews to leave the Iranian tankers before striking them, according to the command.
Four vessels, the M/T Kaviz, M/T Charminar, M/T Horizon 1 and M/T Riesco, were struck in the Gulf of Oman. A fifth, the M/T Derya, was attacked near Kharg Island, a centre of Iran’s oil export infrastructure.
Iran responded with missile attacks directed at US forces at Al Azraq base in Jordan, according to the IRGC. The Iranian force also claimed attacks against US Navy destroyers DDG-119 and DDG-53.
The IRGC later said its forces targeted two US vessels, eight oil tankers and 10 other ships accused of entering what Tehran described as a prohibited zone in the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States had not confirmed the reported damage to its vessels at the time of the claims.
Jordan said its air defences engaged 20 ballistic missiles launched from Iran and intercepted 18. The remaining two landed in unpopulated areas. Jordan’s military reported no deaths.
The attacks added pressure to oil markets and commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the main routes for global energy exports.
Brent crude futures climbed $2.15, or 2.2 per cent, to $100.07 a barrel by 07:21 GMT, according to market figures reported by Al Jazeera. US West Texas Intermediate rose $1.70 to $94.73.
Shipping activity through Hormuz has fallen below recent levels. Reuters reported that according to preliminary Kpler tracking data, only six commodity vessels crossed the strait on Tuesday, compared with nine a day earlier and a 10-day average of about 12.
The data showed five vessels entering the waterway and one leaving. Tracking figures remain subject to revision because ships sometimes turn off their transponders.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington would continue attacking Iranian tankers following attempted strikes against American naval vessels.
“Iran continues to try to hit US naval ships, and for every time they do that or try to do that, they’re going to lose tankers,” Rubio told reporters during a visit to Colombia.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry described the US attacks on its commercial vessels as a violation of the UN Charter and a “war crime”. Tehran said the strikes formed part of Washington’s military and economic campaign against Iran.
The latest exchange follows previous US attacks against three Iranian tankers on 5 September. Iran subsequently reported attacks against commercial and US-linked vessels.
Separate questions are emerging over the future scale of the American military presence in the region. CNN reported, citing US military and intelligence officials, that discussions were under way over a possible reduction in US forces and changes intended to protect remaining installations from missile and drone attacks.
About 50,000 US troops remain deployed across the region, according to the CNN report. Officials were also examining measures to strengthen military positions, including placing some facilities underground.
The report followed months of attacks on American installations during the conflict. The Pentagon casualty database reported 18 American military personnel killed and 820 wounded since the fighting began.
Diplomatic contacts have continued alongside the military exchanges. Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on Wednesday about the conflict and regional security.
Pakistan said the two governments agreed on the need for consultations involving other regional states and planned further discussions around the UN General Assembly in New York.
Iran and Oman are also expected to present plans for a temporary shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, as attempts continue to maintain commercial passage through the waterway.
The conflict began when the United States and Israel launched illegal attacks on Iran on February 28, 2026, in the middle of ongoing negotiations. A memorandum of understanding was signed on June 17, 2026, but it was soon undermined by U.S. violations of its commitments, leading to the breakdown of the agreement and a renewed escalation of hostilities. The Strait of Hormuz was open and free before the US/Israeli aggression.
HT