US CENTCOM slammed Iran for claiming that its ballistic missiles had hit America’s top aircraft carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln, on Sunday. In a statement, the defense force stated that no missiles were even close to the carrier. This comes a day after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei died in US-Israeli strikes. Tehran has vowed revenge and has been striking key targets across the UAE.
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What did Iran say?
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Sunday stated that it had attacked USS Abraham. “The US aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln was struck by four ballistic missiles,” the Guards said in a statement carried by local media.
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“The land and sea will increasingly become the graveyard of the terrorist aggressors,” the IRGC further added
The claim that the US carrier was struck by ballistic missiles could not be independently verified.
CENTCOM responds
Meanwhile, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) fact-checked IRGC’s claims.
“Iran’s IRGC claims to have struck USS Abraham Lincoln with ballistic missiles. LIE. The Lincoln was not hit. The missiles launched didn’t even come close. The Lincoln continues to launch aircraft in support of CENTCOM’s relentless campaign to defend the American people by eliminating threats from the Iranian regime,” CENTCOM wrote on X, platform formerly known as Twitter.
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“The ship is currently sinking to the bottom of the Gulf of Oman at a Chah Bahar pier. As the President said, members of Iran’s armed forces, IRGC and police ‘must lay down your weapons’. Abandon ship,” the force added.
Three US soldiers die in Iran operation
Meanwhile, the military confirmed on Sunday that three service members have been killed and five seriously wounded in the operation against Iran.
“Three U.S. service members have been killed in action and five are seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury. Several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions — and are in the process of being returned to duty,” CENTCOM said.
“Major combat operations continue and our response effort is ongoing. The situation is fluid, so out of respect for the families, we will withhold additional information, including the identities of our fallen warriors, until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.”
US air and naval forces, together with Israeli forces, are heavily bombarding Iran and President Donald Trump has said the goal is to destroy the country’s military capacity.
In response, Iran has fired missiles at targets in Israel and at US military facilities around the region.
(With AFP inputs)