U.S. forces bomb an oil tanker headed for Iran after ignoring repeated warnings

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced Tuesday that U.S. forces bombed and disabled a tanker bound for the Iranian island of Kharg after the vessel failed to comply with repeated instructions issued. According to the command, the Botswana-flagged tanker M/T Lexie was intercepted while sailing through international waters on its way to the island, which is known to be one of the Iranian regime's main oil export centers.

The interception is part of a broader enforcement campaign launched by the President's Administration Donald Trumpin April, a month since when U.S. forces have diverted 122 vessels and disabled six commercial ships attempting to travel to or from Iranian ports located near the Strait of Hormuz, amid negotiations with Iran's Islamic theocracy.

On what happened on the island, CENTCOM detailed that the vessel "ignored repeated warnings" and failed to follow directives issued by U.S. forces for nearly 24 hours. The command added that, tafter several failed attempts to achieve compliance with the orders, U.S. military personnel acted, explaining that, "A U.S. aircraft ultimately disabled the vessel by firing a Hellfire missile into the ship’s engine room, preventing the tanker from reaching Iran." Similarly, CENTCOM reported that the tanker was not carrying oil or any other cargo at the time of the incident.

Shortly after CENTCOM's announcement, Kuwait's Armed Forces reported that its air defense systems were again intercepting missile and drone attacks by Iran, and urged the public "not to approach or touch any debris, shrapnel or unidentified objects that may result from the interception of hostile aerial targets."

Over the weekend, U.S. forces attacked Iranian radar and drone facilities, to which Tehran responded by attacking a military base in Kuwait that it claimed was involved in the U.S. operation.