US strikes Iranian oil tankers as Tehran targets American base in Jordan

US forces struck five Iranian tankers on Tuesday, sinking one, in response to Tehran twice targeting an American warship, US Central Command (Centcom) said.

Four Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) were targeted, as well as another near Kharg Island, a major oil terminal off Iran's coast, Centcom added.

Tehran responded by launching missiles at a US base in Jordan - most of which were shot down - and said it attacked two US vessels and eight oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Tit-for-tat strikes between the two countries have escalated in the past week, more than six months after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on 28 February.

Oil prices rose in Asia trading. Benchmark Brent crude was up by 1.5% at $99.35 (£73.35) a barrel, while US-traded oil was 1.3% higher at $94.23.

Jordan said it had shot down 18 of the 20 Iranian missiles, while two of them fell in unpopulated areas, an official spokesperson for the Jordanian Armed Forces said.

After warning of further retaliatory strikes, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday they had attacked two US vessels, eight oil tankers and 10 "non-compliant vessels" trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, state media reported.

The latest round of escalation comes after Iran targeted a US warship with ballistic missiles, which Centcom said were "successfully evaded". It added that no American troops were harmed during the attacks.