U.S. forces attacked five Iran-linked tankers on Tuesday after a second attempted Iranian missile strike against a U.S. Navy vessel, according to U.S. Central Command. Iran later issued a warning to tanker crews near Kuwait and Bahrain, saying merchant vessels linked to Gulf states could face retaliation.

The five tankers targeted were Derya, Horizon 1, Kaviz, Charminar and Riesco. Images released by Central Command showed damage near the stern of several vessels. Riesco was hit more heavily and subsequently sank.

The latest exchange followed an incident on Monday in which Iran used a new anti-ship missile model against an unidentified U.S. Navy vessel. Major General Mohsen Rezaei, a senior Iranian security official, described the launch as a test.

The confrontation followed another round of attacks over the previous weekend. Iran fired ballistic missiles toward a U.S. aircraft carrier and a destroyer, but neither warship was struck. U.S. forces then targeted three Iranian tankers, sinking one and damaging two.

After Tuesday’s tanker strikes, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued an urgent warning aimed at tanker crews off Kuwait and Bahrain. It told crews to leave vessels located at anchorages or alongside docks and said those ships would be targeted.

Iran also carried out a separate ballistic missile attack against U.S. bases in Jordan. Bystander images suggested that some of the missiles may have been equipped with cluster munitions. Local air-defense batteries used a large number of interceptors during the attack. The level of any damage to base infrastructure remained unknown.

Concerns have also been raised about Iran’s anti-ship weapons and targeting capabilities. U.S. officials cited by the Wall Street Journal said the quality of those systems appeared to be improving and suggested that foreign technical support could be involved.

Separately, the United States sanctioned three Chinese satellite and geospatial data companies in May for supplying Iran with satellite imagery considered useful for military purposes. The source also stated that Russia is widely believed to be providing Tehran with advanced satellite surveillance.

The latest attacks and warnings have added another round of military action involving U.S. naval forces, Iran-linked tankers and merchant shipping near Kuwait and Bahrain.

CENTCOM forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers, Sept. 8, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the past two days. The U.S. warship successfully evaded the attempted Iranian attacks and… pic.twitter.com/Gi8a2tloN1

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 8, 2026

M/T Riesco sinks in the Gulf of Oman, Sept. 8, after being destroyed by CENTCOM forces in response to attempted IRGC attacks on a U.S. Navy warship. pic.twitter.com/EkmG8uyMT9

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 9, 2026