Military tensions between the United States and Iran have escalated again, with Washington claiming to have struck and disabled five Iranian tankers, while Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it launched a missile attack on a US military base in Jordan in retaliation.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said five Iranian tankers were struck on September 8 near the Gulf of Oman and Kharg Island. The vessels were identified as M/T Kaviz, M/T Charminar, M/T Horizon 1, M/T Riesco and M/T Derya.

According to CENTCOM, the tankers were targeted in response to drone and missile attacks by Iran’s IRGC against US fighter aircraft patrolling the Strait of Hormuz. The United States said the strikes damaged the vessels but caused no casualties among the crews. It also claimed that the crews had been ordered to leave the ships before the attacks.

Iran’s state-run television channel IRIB confirmed the strikes on the tankers.

Meanwhile, the IRGC claimed that it had fired several ballistic missiles at a US military base in the Al Azraq area of Jordan in retaliation for the tanker strikes. Jordan’s Defence Forces said its air-defence systems intercepted and destroyed most of the missiles before they reached their targets.

The IRGC also claimed that two US Navy destroyers were damaged in Iranian missile attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. No further details were immediately available regarding the claim.

In addition, the IRGC threatened to attack ports in Kuwait and Bahrain, both US allies in the Middle East. The Iranian force warned crews of oil tankers at the ports to leave their vessels.

The latest exchange of attacks has further intensified the ongoing military tensions between the United States and Iran in the Middle East.