U.S. attacks 3 Iranian tankers in tit-for-tat response

U.S. forces struck three Iranian oil tankers Saturday after Iran fired ballistic missiles at two U.S.

Navy warships, U.S.

Central Command said.

Why it matters: The strikes continue a tit-for-tat war that just passed the six-month mark .

A U.S. official told Axios this week it had a new "tanker-for-tanker" policy approved by President Trump.

Driving the news: CENTCOM said it retaliated after a U.S. aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer evaded missiles fired by Iran.

The U.S. attacks "permanently disabled" the M/T Downy and the M/T Stark 1, CENTCOM said in a news release.

They also "completely destroyed" the M/T Kylo in the Gulf of Oman after the crew was warned to abandon ship.

CENTCOM posted footage of the strikes on social media.

The big picture: On the first day of the war, Trump told Axios he "can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days." The next day, he predicted to the Daily Mail the military campaign would "take four weeks — or less." Six months later, the U.S. and Iran are still trading attacks.

The latest exchange came a day after Trump called the Iran conflict "small potatoes" and two days after Vice President Vance insisted there was no war and "no active shooting" between the two.

An Aug.

14–17 Economist/YouGov poll found 65% of Americans want the U.S. to make a deal to end the war as quickly as possible.