1st LD Writethru: Iran's IRGC says it struck 3 U.S., British oil tankers, putting them on fire

TEHRAN, March 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Sunday it struck three oil tankers belonging to the United States and Britain in the Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz with missiles, setting the vessels on fire.

In a statement on its official outlet Sepah News, the IRGC said it also targeted U.S. military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain. It said strikes on Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait rendered it completely out of service, destroyed three naval infrastructure structures at the Mohammed Al-Ahmad naval base, and hit a U.S. naval command and backup center in Bahrain.

Another U.S. base in Bahrain was reportedly hit by two ballistic missiles. The IRGC claimed the attacks caused 560 U.S. casualties, though the U.S. has not confirmed the report.

Following the announcement, International Maritime Organization Secretary General Arsenio Dominguez urged shipping companies to exercise "maximum caution" and, where possible, avoid the affected region. He stressed that freedom of navigation is a "fundamental principle of international maritime law."

The strikes came a day after U.S. and Israeli forces launched large-scale attacks on Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and several senior officials, prompting retaliatory attacks by Iran on U.S. and Israeli targets across the Middle East. Enditem