US military destroys three IRGC-linked oil tankers near Kharg Island and Jask

The US military announced it destroyed three oil tankers linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in retaliation for Iranian fire on American warships. One vessel was permanently disabled near Kharg Island and another near Jask port. Iranian officials pledged a strong response, calling the strikes on Kharg a further blow to Iran's oil-export economy.

Why this matters. Kharg Island handles the vast majority of Iran's crude exports, so disabling tankers there directly threatens Iran's remaining oil revenue and raises the chance of an Iranian retaliatory strike on US naval assets or Gulf shipping.