Hours after an Iranian warship was attacked in the Indian Ocean, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on Thursday claimed it struck an American tanker in the northern Persian Gulf, Reuters reported. The Iranian state media said the US ship was on fire. The casualties, if any, are not known yet.

The development marks a significant escalation in the conflict, which has left over a thousand dead in Iran and claimed the lives of six American soldiers. It comes less than 24 hours after a US submarine sank an Iranian warship off the southern coast of Sri Lanka, expanding the war zone to the Indian Ocean and bringing it to India's backyard.

Over the past couple of days, the US has ramped up strikes on Iranian naval forces, including attacks on a container ship converted into an aircraft carrier for drones and on naval bases along the edge of the Persian Gulf.

Source: India Today