ReportU.S. Destroys Five Iranian Tankers; Oil Tops $100Aired September 10, 2026 at 12:08 AM UTCWritten September 10, 2026 at 12:15 AM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:00America destroyed five Iranian oil tankers after Iran fired two missiles at an0:04American warship.0:05The strikes aim at Iran's crude lifeline at Karg Island, which handles about 90% of0:10the country's oil exports.0:11That lifeline is now under direct assault, and the economic consequence is0:15immediate.0:15Brent crude has climbed above $100 a barrel for the first time since July, driven by0:20the strikes and a recovery in Chinese oil buying.0:23The oil is not just a number.0:25It is a live inflation threat to the global economy, and it raises the stakes for0:29everyone.0:30The question now is whether this becomes a wider naval war or whether any channel0:35opens before the region is dragged deeper.0:37The war is six months old, but this week it reached the oil.0:40It began February 28th with Operation Epic Fury, joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on0:45Iranian military and nuclear installations whose opening salvo killed Supreme Leader0:49Ali Khamenei.0:50What followed was a grinding campaign that expanded into the waters carrying Iran's0:54oil.0:54The three tankers struck on the 5th and 6th were the earlier action that initial0:58coverage confused with the five destroyed on the 8th.1:01The US military's tally for the week is higher still.1:04Ten tankers destroyed in about seven days, all tied to the Revolutionary Guard's1:08shadow fleet.1:09The five-tanker assault on the 8th was the largest single wave of attacks on1:12shipping since the war began.1:14And it was a direct response to two ballistic missile attempts on an American1:18warship, both of which it evaded.1:20The five destroyed on the 8th are the largest single day of the week.1:24Four were crewed carriers in the Gulf of Oman: the Caviz, Sharminar, Horizon 1, and1:29Riesco.1:30And the fifth, the Daria, was hit near Harg Island, Iran's principal crude export1:35terminal.1:36Crews were ordered off before the strikes, and Riesco was caught on video sinking.1:40The two missile attacks that triggered the response both missed, and no American1:44personnel were harmed.1:45The warship that dodged them remains unnamed and still on patrol.1:49Iran's claims of hitting two destroyers, the Delbert D.1:52Black and the John Paul Jones, are contradicted by the US military, which says all1:56Iranian attempts against US ships failed.1:59Iran's retaliation came within a day.2:01It fired roughly twenty ballistic missiles at a base in Jordan used by US forces in2:06the Muafak Salty and Al-Azraq area.2:09Jordan intercepted 18 of them, and all US personnel were accounted for.2:13Tehran also claims it attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz and more than a2:17dozen vessels trying to pass through the strait on Wednesday.2:20The Revolutionary Guard warned tanker crews near Kuwait and Bahrain, both of which2:25host US forces, to abandon their ships.2:28Iran says it will announce a new restricted zone in the Gulf in the coming days, and2:32it has warned that US energy assets in the Gulf are vulnerable.2:36The US military says every Iranian attempt against US forces failed.2:40That assessment is driving a serious debate inside the Pentagon.2:43Officials are discussing reducing the US Middle East presence after substantial2:47damage to bases.2:48Petraeus points to repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks on hubs like Al Udayd2:53in Qatar and Bahrain's Fifth Fleet facilities, and to the unsustainable economics of2:57firing expensive interceptors at cheap drones.3:00He says the large base posture of the past is no longer viable.3:03Other retired commanders, including Frank McKenzie, argue for dispersing forces and3:08shifting weight westward rather than rebuilding concentrated bases.3:12A U.S.3:13effort to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz, called Project Freedom, was3:16halted at Pakistan's request.3:18The Abraham Lincoln is not the ship that dodged the missiles.3:21That distinction belongs to an unnamed warship still on patrol.3:25The Lincoln, however, is the face of the campaign's cost.3:29It left San Diego on November 21st, 2025, spent roughly seven months in the Central3:35Command Area, and made its first Liberty call in Lame Chabang, Thailand, around3:39September 2nd to 6th, after about 286 days away from home that included a 208-day3:45uninterrupted stretch at sea.3:47As of September 8th, it was in the South China Sea, roughly 20 days from San Diego.3:51The deployment ground down the crew.3:53Media described a mental health crisis so severe that some sailors tried to jump3:57overboard along with exhausted crews.3:59food shortages and families raising the alarm.4:02And despite reports calling it the longest deployment in history, that is not4:05accurate.4:06The record belongs to the USS Gerald R.4:08Ford at 326 days.4:10The Lincoln is a candidate for second longest, and President Trump has called its4:14deployment not nearly long enough.4:16That extended deployment also carried a warning.4:18The Air Wing flew more than 10,000 sorties and delivered over a million and a half4:23pounds of ordnance.4:24Yet no off-ramp is visible.4:26No diplomatic channel between the two governments is operating, despite the stakes.4:30Oil at $100 is a live inflation threat to the broader economy, and Iran's threats4:35now extend to South Korean shipping and to Greece and Cyprus, which carries NATO4:39implications.4:39The campaign that sank five tankers is a phase, not a settlement, and the ships and4:43sailors bearing its weight have no end date in sight.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSSThe shortThe short ↗