Iran claims strike on US navy drone, US says it's 'total lie' as Hormuz clashes rage on

Iran claimed on Sunday that its forces targeted a US sea drone as it attempted to enter what it called a "restricted" area in the Strait of Hormuz, but the US military later denied Tehran's claim, as the standoff in the key waterway keeps escalating.

In a statement on Iranian state television, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed it launched an attack on an "unmanned surface vessel" off the south coast of Iran, saying that “the aggressor United States must understand that it has no choice but to leave the region and stop its acts of mischief.”

A spokesman for the US Central Command CENTCOM, which coordinates US military operations in the Middle East, later said the Iranian claim is "a total lie".

CENTCOM also announced on Sunday that the US military redirected 92 commercial vessels, disabled three, and boarded two others to "ensure strict compliance" with the US blockade of the Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.

The United Kingdom's Maritime Trade Operations Center (UKMTO) announced on Sunday that 59 ships have transited the strait over the last 48 hours.

The US-Iran war of words on Sunday comes after the IRGC claimed on Saturday that it had also carried out strikes on three oil tankers and three US-linked vessels in the Strait.

The US military did not confirm Iran's claims.

The Iranian claim followed the CENTCOM announcement earlier on Saturday that its forces had struck three Iranian oil tankers in response to what it said were ballistic missile strikes launched by the IRGC against two US navy warships on Friday.

Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of CENTCOM, announced the US strikes on the Iranian tankers by warning Tehran, saying "let the message to the IRGC be clear: If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost —taking out three of yours. We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet," he said.

"Following Iran’s failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask," it said in a statement. "American forces also completely destroyed the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo (also known as the “Noxen”) in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after the crew was directed to abandon ship".

"A U.S. aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer successfully evaded multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks. No American personnel were harmed," it added.