Iranian Navy Says Missiles, Drones Targeted US Warships

Iran’s navy said on Friday that its navy fired warning shots at two US Navy guided-missile destroyers in the Sea of Oman and the ships then retreated toward the Indian Ocean. Within an hour the U.S. Central Command flatly denied the account.

The two destroyers were targeted with Qadir cruise missiles and newly developed Shahid Dana offensive drones, the public relations office of the Iranian Army said in a statement. Tehran said the vessels then left the Sea of Oman. The Iranian statement did not say when the alleged incident took place.

The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) directly challenged the claim on X, stating that the Iranian forces did NOT attack or fire upon U.S. Navy warships. That would be a serious violation of the cease-fire. It further added that the U.S. forces continue to operate freely in regional waters, fully enforcing the ongoing blockade against Iran.

Iran’s statement went further, saying the same operation, and similar actions in previous days, also forced the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli to leave the Sea of Oman. The targeted destroyers were operating as part of the USS George H.W. Bush carrier strike group and were described by Tehran as the command and control hub for what Iran characterised as hostile US naval activity in the region.

A separate warning was issued by the Iranian Navy Operations Command in tandem with the claim. It said longer-range missiles would be used if necessary against US ships that ventured beyond the range of weapons already in place.

Iran said the alleged move was in retaliation for what it described as US interference with commercial shipping and seizure of Iranian oil tankers. Washington has been imposing a naval blockade of Iran since late April and tensions in the Sea of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz have flared up repeatedly in recent weeks.

CENTCOM has repeatedly warned that any Iranian attack on US naval vessels would break that ceasefire.

Earlier on Friday, the US Indo-Pacific Command said American forces intercepted the sanctioned stateless tanker M/T Davina overnight in the Indian Ocean. The operation was part of the wider campaign to enforce the blockade against vessels suspected of carrying Iranian-origin petroleum.

The Sea of Oman between the Iranian and Omani coasts connects the Strait of Hormuz to the Arabian Sea and carries a large share of the world’s crude oil trade. Since the blockade was imposed it has become the main field of confrontation between US and Iranian navies.

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