Recording shows US military attacking an Iran-related oil tanker

On June 2, Xinhua News Agency reported from London (Reporter Gao Wencheng) that a sailor from a stranded merchant ship near the Strait of Hormuz provided exclusive recordings of ship radio public channels to Xinhua reporters, showing that U.S. military aircraft attacked an Iranian-related oil tanker on the evening of the 2nd, and the crew of the attacked tanker subsequently abandoned the ship.

The radio recordings show that U.S. military aircraft communicated with the oil tanker, saying: "This is a U.S. military aircraft. We will open fire on your engine room. Stop the ship, stop the ship, evacuate the engine room personnel." The crew of the oil tanker later sent a distress message, stating that the engine room was on fire, "We are abandoning the ship."

On the afternoon of the 2nd, Eastern Time, the U.S. Central Command posted on social media, confirming that U.S. forces had intercepted a tanker attempting to sail to Iranian ports in the Persian Gulf, stating that U.S. military aircraft fired a missile that hit the engine room, causing the ship to lose power.

The oil tanker is named "LEXIE" and was placed on the sanctions list by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control in March 2025 for participating in Iranian oil trade.

Since April 13, the U.S. has implemented a blockade on all ships entering and leaving Iranian ports, applying pressure on Iran. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Baghaei stated on May 29 that the U.S. so-called "maritime blockade" has been illegal from the very beginning, violating the ceasefire agreement and obstructing the freedom of international navigation.