Iranian oil tanker sinks after US strike in Gulf of Oman (Video)

An Iranian crude oil tanker has sunk in the Gulf of Oman after being hit by US forces, according to US Central Command (CENTCOM), amid a rapidly escalating exchange of attacks between Washington and Tehran.

The M/T Kylo was one of three Iranian commercial vessels targeted by the US military on Saturday. CENTCOM said the strikes were carried out after Iran fired ballistic missiles towards an American aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer.

CENTCOM announced on Sunday that the Kylo had subsequently sunk, saying the vessel had “joined Iran’s navy at the bottom of the sea.”

Drone footage released by the US military showed the tanker partially submerged and emitting thick smoke. CENTCOM said the vessel was not carrying oil when it was attacked and claimed its crew had been instructed to abandon ship beforehand.

The confrontation comes after hostilities between the US and Iran intensified earlier in the week. Washington carried out strikes against Iran on Tuesday, after which Tehran launched missile and drone attacks against American facilities in the Gulf.

US officials characterised Iran’s attempted strikes on the two American warships as unsuccessful and “unprovoked.” CENTCOM also alleged that the three Iranian vessels targeted in response belonged to a “multibillion-dollar shadow network” used to finance the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

“If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost – taking out three of yours,” CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper said.

Iran has acknowledged that three of its tankers were attacked and damaged by US forces, although Tehran has not confirmed the American claim that the Kylo sank.

Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters warned that further US action against Iranian shipping and the continued blockade of the country’s ports would trigger “more severe” attacks against American military vessels operating in the region.

The IRGC, meanwhile, said it had retaliated by attacking three oil tankers it accused of “trespassing” in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as three US-linked vessels.

Iranian forces also claimed to have fired several ballistic missiles at a US aircraft carrier and destroyer, asserting that the warships sustained damage and subsequently withdrew from the area. CENTCOM disputed that account, saying both vessels successfully avoided the Iranian attacks and that no US personnel were injured.

Tehran has previously warned that oil and gas infrastructure belonging to Washington’s Gulf allies could be targeted if the US attacks Iranian petroleum facilities, particularly those on Kharg Island, or attempts to seize the strategically important island.