'You Have 3 Minutes': US Warned Tanker Crew
'You Have 3 Minutes': US Warned Tanker Crew
The News
A US military aircraft gave the crew of the Iranian oil tanker Stark 1 three minutes to get off the stern of their ship before opening fire, according to video obtained by Iran International.
The outlet says the footage was filmed aboard a nearby vessel and captures three warnings over the VHF radio channel as the tanker sat near Kharg Island.
The Stark 1 is one of three Iranian tankers US Central Command says it struck Saturday, after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired ballistic missiles at two US Navy warships.
What the Audio Says
In the first call, the aircraft says: "Motor Tanker STARK 1, this is the United States military aircraft. I am preparing to fire at your stern. You have 3 minutes to clear the crew from the stern of your ship. Over."
The second warning cuts the window to one minute. The third is final: "This was your final warning... get into your lifeboats and abandon the ship immediately."
Between the warnings, crew members can be heard talking in Persian and Urdu, Iran International reported. One asks whether the captain and his deputy are at their posts. He is told the captain is still asleep.
Timeline
Washington first sanctions the Stark 1, according to Iran International.
The US and Israel launch the initial strikes on Iran. Iran responds by effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz.
Vice President JD Vance says the conflict should not be called a "war."
President Donald Trump seeks to play down the conflict as "small potatoes," PBS NewsHour reported.
Iranian media report that US forces hit a tanker six miles off Kharg Island, without naming the vessel.
CENTCOM says the IRGC launched ballistic missiles at a US aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer. Both ships evaded the missiles and no American personnel were harmed, the command said.
US forces strike three Iranian tankers in response. The Stark 1 and the M/T Downy are permanently disabled near Kharg Island and Jask; the M/T Kylo is destroyed near the Gulf of Oman.
Iran International publishes the video of the three radio warnings to the Stark 1 crew.
Reactions
CENTCOM described the three tankers as part of a multibillion-dollar shadow network that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies.
Iranian state media said four missiles struck the Stark 1. Iranian outlets reported the strike Saturday morning before the vessel was publicly identified.
The Independent reported that the Kylo was not carrying oil when it was destroyed.
Iran's government had not publicly responded as of the latest reporting Saturday.
What's Next
The open question is whether Tehran answers the strikes, and where. The IRGC's missile attack on the carrier and destroyer failed; the US response cost Iran three vessels.
Kharg Island handles roughly 90% of Iran's crude oil exports, which makes the waters where the Stark 1 was hit the most sensitive stretch of the Persian Gulf for Iran's economy.
Control of the Strait of Hormuz remains the central flashpoint after six months of on-again, off-again fighting.
More
The warnings matter because they go to intent. The audio, if authentic, shows US aircraft telling a crew to clear the stern and take to the lifeboats before firing — a sequence consistent with CENTCOM's account that it aimed to disable the tankers rather than sink them with their crews aboard.
The Frank reported the strike earlier Saturday based on Iranian media accounts, when only Tehran had described what happened and the ship had not been named. The US military has since confirmed the operation and Iran International has identified the vessel.
The Stark 1 was carrying Iranian oil at the time, according to Iran International. The recording has been published by Iran International; The Frank has not independently verified the audio.
Poll
Was the US right to strike Iran's oil tankers after the missile attack on its warships?
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