In a cowardly low-tech ambush on day 76 of the 2026 US-Iran war, IRGC operatives disguised as fishermen fired an anti-ship missile from a civilian trawler at a U.S. destroyer escorting the battered USS Gerald R. Ford carrier group through the Strait of Hormuz.

The USS Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Paul Ignatius detected the threat at close range — too late for full evasion. The missile grazed the hull, igniting fires in the engine room and wounding 14 sailors. Quick damage control kept the ship afloat and fighting, but the strike exposed Iran’s shift to asymmetric terror tactics after F-15E bombs gutted their factories.

IRGC bragged it was “genius deception,” blending into fishing traffic to bypᴀss radar. U.S. Navy hunters sank the rogue boat in retaliation, killing all aboard.

This hits amid Fattah-1 F-35 shootdowns, Khorramshahr-4 Tel Aviv carnage (167 ᴅᴇᴀᴅ), Haj Qasem barrages. Two carriers limp on; F-15s, A-10s, 13,000+ Marines press. Casualties climb: 234 GIs injured, 13 ᴅᴇᴀᴅ. Trump fumed: “Iran’s pirates play dirty — we’ll hunt every boat!”

Brent crude erupts past $156/barrel, gas pumps soar worldwide. SEAL mine wins hold waterway, but Iran’s boat swarms threaten chaos.

Tehran’s desperation grows: factories ash, missiles scarce, now pirate attacks? U.S. steel unbreakable — end nears for regime?