In a message carried by state broadcaster IRIB, the IRGC said the warning applied to tankers that were either anchored or docked at the ports.
“We warn all crews aboard oil tankers in the vicinity of ports in Kuwait and Bahrain — which host these (American) terrorists and are partners in their hostile actions — to immediately leave their vessels, whether they are at anchor or docked at the ports, as the vessels will be targeted,” the IRGC said, accusing Kuwait and Bahrain of hosting US forces and supporting their actions.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said four tankers were struck in the Gulf of Oman and one near Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf. It said the action followed two attempted ballistic missile attacks by Iran’s IRGC on a US Navy warship.
The US said the warship evaded both attacks, with no American personnel injured. CENTCOM also said crews were ordered to abandon the tankers before the vessels were struck and rendered inoperable.
Iranian state media, however, reported that two tankers were hit — one about four miles from Kharg Island, a major Iranian oil export hub, and another off Jask near the Gulf of Oman. It said crews were being taken ashore in lifeboats.
Shortly after the warning was issued, the IRGC said that it launched “devastating” missile strikes on a US military base in Jordan, calling the action a response to US attacks on Iranian vessels.
In a statement carried by the state media, the IRGC said a “significant number” of solid- and liquid-fuel ballistic missiles hit areas used for the maintenance, preparation and deployment of US F-35, F-16 and F-15 fighter jets, as well as aircraft shelters.
The warnings to tanker crews and the reported missile strikes in Jordan followed the US strikes on Iranian vessels, escalating the confrontation involving Iranian forces, US military assets and vessels operating near Kuwait, Bahrain, the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.
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