U.S. Strikes Iranian Ships in Hormuz — Trump’s ‘Tanker for Tanker’ Policy Begins

The U.S. military struck two Iranian government tankers Tuesday under a new “tanker for tanker” policy approved by President Donald Trump to retaliate for Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

The strikes marked the first time U.S. forces targeted Iranian tankers specifically in retaliation for attacks on vessels transiting the strategic waterway, rather than as part of operations to enforce the American blockade, U.S. officials told Axios.

An infographic showing locations of reported explosions in the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S.  launched an attack, Iranian media reported that explosions were heard around the cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik, as well as on Qeshm Island. (Murat Usubali/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The two tankers were anchored off Iran’s coast north of the U.S. blockade line when American drones fired missiles into their engine rooms, according to the report.

TankerTrackers.com, which analyzed footage released by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) following the operation, assessed that the two vessels were empty, but said their precise ownership could not yet be established.

The retaliatory policy follows a pair of attacks on commercial tankers carrying Saudi crude through the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has repeatedly threatened and targeted shipping during its confrontation with the United States.

CENTCOM said Tuesday’s broader operation came after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attempted to attack commercial vessels transiting the strait and struck roughly 100 targets across Iran. The targets included air-defense and radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine-laying capabilities, communications sites and other systems used to threaten shipping in the region.

The command also released footage from the operation showing strikes against several targets, including what appears to be one of the vessels hit during the campaign.

U.S. officials said the operation substantially degraded Iran’s ability to threaten commercial traffic through Hormuz and “bought at least a month” of reduced threat levels for vessels using the waterway.

Roughly 40 commercial ships transited into or out of the Persian Gulf on Tuesday, carrying millions of barrels of oil, as U.S. forces maintained security over the shipping lanes. American forces also intercepted several anti-ship cruise missiles and drones fired by the IRGC toward vessels in the strait, with none reaching their targets, according to U.S. officials.

Iran responded to the broader U.S. operation with ballistic missile and drone attacks against American forces and facilities across the region. U.S. officials said Tehran launched roughly 25 ballistic missiles, about half of which reached Jordanian airspace, where 10 were intercepted and three landed in remote areas without causing casualties.

Iran also launched roughly two dozen drones toward U.S. facilities in Bahrain, most of which were intercepted, while additional missiles and drones targeted American forces in Kuwait. Two drones fired toward a U.S. base in Erbil, Iraq, were also intercepted, according to the report.

The strikes were also part of a broader U.S. effort to prevent Iran from rebuilding military capabilities damaged during the war. American officials have described the strategy as periodically “mowing the lawn” by striking systems Tehran has managed to restore or replace.

The tanker strikes came as Trump increasingly portrayed Washington as holding the upper hand in the battle over Hormuz. Following Tuesday’s operation, the president said he preferred the current U.S. position to forcing Tehran back into negotiations.

“I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “They are just playing out the inevitable.”

The president’s declaration came as the administration pressed Iran on both military and economic fronts, seeking to keep the strait open while denying Tehran the ability to rebuild the forces used to threaten commercial shipping.

One U.S. official offered an even more sweeping assessment of Tuesday’s operation and the balance of power in the strategic waterway.

“The Iranians have not only lost control of the Strait of Hormuz, they have also lost control over the conflict,” the official told Axios. “They got nothing today.”