Central Command confirms three vessels disabled or sunk following attacks on American warships, while Western powers advance a diplomatic push to censure Tehran at the UN
WASHINGTON / DUBAI — September 5, 2026:American forces struck and disabled three Iranian oil tankers in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman on Saturday, escalating economic pressure on Tehran hours after President Donald Trump warned that the United States could target Iran’s deeply buried Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site “very soon”.
U.S. Central Command confirmed that American warships intercepted and neutralized incoming missile fire before retaliating against commercial vessels tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Military officials said precision strikes permanently disabled the crude carriers M/T Downy near Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 off the port of Jask. A third vessel, the unladen tanker M/T Kylo, was destroyed in the Gulf of Oman after its crew was ordered to abandon ship.
Admiral Brad Cooper, deputy commander of CENTCOM, issued a direct warning to Iranian commanders following the naval engagement.
“If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost—taking out three of yours,” Cooper said. “We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.”
Iranian state media reported missile impacts near Kharg Island—the primary conduit for approximately 90% of Iran’s seaborne crude exports before maritime blockades took effect—confirming that the vessel’s crew evacuated without recorded casualties.
The maritime engagement followed remarks delivered by Trump in the Oval Office, where he pointed directly to the fortified Pickaxe Mountain subterranean complex near Natanz. Known locally as Kūh-e Kolang Gaz Lā, the granite-shielded facility is built more than 100 meters underground, making it significantly deeper and more resistant to aerial assault than the enrichment halls at Fordow.
Trump stated that American satellite and space surveillance systems maintain constant tracking over all vehicle and personnel movements at the site.
“We know everybody that’s moving at Pickaxe, we know everybody that’s moving everywhere all over Iran,” Trump said. “And if anything goes bad, we hit them, we hit them hard.”
Western and regional intelligence assessments suggest Iran may have relocated thousands of advanced centrifuge assemblies and enriched stockpiles into Pickaxe Mountain following prior strikes against above-ground halls at Natanz. Military analysts note that while 30,000-pound bunker-penetrating ordnance might struggle to breach the solid bedrock roof, strikes targeting tunnel portals, ventilation shafts, and power substations could render the complex entirely unusable.
The military confrontations are unfolding alongside parallel diplomatic maneuvers. The United States, Britain, France, and Germany are advancing a draft resolution demanding accountability over Tehran’s undeclared nuclear activities, a move intended to refer Iran to the United Nations Security Council.
Washington has also cleared a proposed $5 billion defense equipment package for Saudi Arabia, reinforcing Gulf air and missile defenses as regional tensions disrupt maritime traffic near the Strait of Hormuz.
Tehran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the strikes, stating that its armed forces acted defensively against American assets and accusing Washington of infringing upon Iranian territorial sovereignty.
