U.S. Shoots Down Iranian Drone Aimed at Carrier
Iranian gunboats also tried to stop a U.S.-flagged ship, and Tehran scrambled plans for talks, as tensions rise in the Middle East
Updated Feb. 3, 2026 1:14 pm ET The Wall Street Journal
The U.S. shot down an Iranian drone targeting the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, and a U.S.-flagged ship evaded an attempt by armed Iranian gunboats to force it to stop, as tensions escalated Tuesday in the Persian Gulf.
The Lincoln was sailing about 500 miles from Iran’s southern coast when an Iranian Shahed-139 drone “unnecessarily maneuvered toward the ship” and continued flying toward the carrier even after U.S. forces took steps to de-escalate, spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins said, without specifying the steps.
An F-35C fighter from the Lincoln then destroyed the drone, which caused no damage, Hawkins said.
Hours later, two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boats and an Iranian Mohajer drone sped toward a U.S.-flagged ship and threatened to board and seize the tanker, according to the U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Middle East.
A U.S. destroyer with air support escorted the tanker to safety, Hawkins said.
The provocative moves come at a sensitive moment, as the U.S. and Iran exchange threats while exploring a negotiated solution to a conflict sparked when President Trump threatened intervention over Iran’s brutal crackdown on protesters earlier this year.
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Adding to the tension, Iranian officials threatened to pull out of talks with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner that had been scheduled to take place Friday in Turkey, people familiar with the matter said.
Iran wants move the venue to Oman and overhaul their format, rejecting a broader discussion that would cover U.S. concerns about the country’s ballistic missile program and support for regional militant groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, the people said.
Regional powers had worked to set up the talks over Tehran’s nuclear program to open a diplomatic pathway to avert a possible war.
The U.S. came close to a strike on Iran in the middle of January, but lacked sufficient forces to pull off the kind of “decisive” attack Trump requested so held off.
Earlier on Tuesday, Maritime Security Firm Vanguard said in a message to clients that six Iranian gunboats armed with 50-caliber guns approached the U.S.-flagged tanker and ordered it to kill the engines and prepare to be boarded.
“Given increased military activity and elevated regional tensions, the potential for misjudgment cannot be discounted,” Vanguard said in a separate note to clients.
Iran has harassed commercial vessels in the crucial waterway—the gateway to the Persian Gulf—during previous periods of tension, but such incidents have been rare recently. In a notable exception, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy seized a Cyprus-flagged tanker in November and turned it loose after a few days.
The Revolutionary Guard had planned live-fire military drills on Sunday and Monday in the strait but canceled them after a U.S. warning, a U.S. official said.
The U.S. has moved more warships into the region, part of what Trump called an “armada” heading toward Iran. The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier battle group arrived in the region in late January, along with sophisticated F-35 jets and missile defenses that continue to deploy.