TEHRAN: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced a sweeping and devastating retaliation against American assets in the Middle East, claiming to have inflicted severe damage on key military installations, struck a US aircraft carrier, and killed or wounded 560 American troops. The massive salvo, dubbed “Operation True Promise 4,” comes in direct response to the joint US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader .
In a series of statements carried by Iranian state media, the IRGC painted a picture of a successful and crippling attack on the United States’ military footprint in the Gulf region. The claims, which remain largely unverified by independent sources and are vehemently denied by US Central Command (CENTCOM), suggest a significant escalation in one of the most severe crises the region has faced in decades.
‘Total Destruction’ at Strategic Bases
According to the IRGC, the opening wave of the attack focused on dismantling US air power and naval command structures in the Gulf. The Corps announced that the Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait has been “completely decommissioned” and taken out of service following strikes involving ballistic missiles and drones . The IRGC claimed that infrastructure at the base, which hosts the US Air Force’s 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, was destroyed, and three US naval infrastructure facilities in the area were also hit .
Simultaneously, the IRGC reported a successful drone attack on the heart of the US Navy’s regional command. The Naval Support Activity in Bahrain, home to the US Fifth Fleet, was struck by four drones, which the IRGC claims caused “severe damage” and “significant damage to its command and support centers” . Videos verified by outlets such as Stars and Stripes appeared to show thick plumes of smoke rising over the base in Manama following the strikes, with US personnel later evacuated from high-rise buildings in the area due to safety concerns .
The Carrier Strike: A ‘Graveyard’ at Sea
In what would be a historic first, the IRGC claimed it had successfully targeted a US aircraft carrier. The Guards asserted that four ballistic missiles struck the USS Abraham Lincoln, warning that “land and sea will become more and more the graveyard of terrorist aggressors” .
However, this claim was met with an immediate and forceful denial from US Central Command. “The missiles launched didn’t even come close,” CENTCOM stated on social media, flatly labeling the Iranian assertion a “LIE.” The command affirmed that the Lincoln was unharmed and continued flight operations in support of US missions.
