TEHRAN - The Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Sunday that it fired four missiles targeting the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, according to a statement issued by the military unit.

The move occurred as the conflict between Iran and the U.S.-Israel axis entered its second day. 

The IRGC stated  in its bulletin that assaults against U.S.-Israeli assets and positions in West Asia have now "entered a new phase," further vowing that Tehran would continue to strike the two regimes until the region becomes their "cemetery."

While the statement provided no detail on potential damage to the carrier, the U.S. military acknowledged to Al-Jazeera that the Abraham Lincoln had been targeted, but claimed there had been no significant harm. Nevertheless, Iran is expected to continue striking both the USS Abraham Lincoln and the USS Gerald R. Ford, which have been stationed near Iranian territory for days, even as diplomatic engagements were proceeding with Washington. 

The Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who was martyred in the initial U.S.-Israeli strikes on Tehran Saturday morning, had previously warned Iran would attempt to sink both vessels. He had also said that any new conflict with the U.S. would be inherently "regional," a promise Iranian Armed Forces appear to be fulfilling by attacking nearly every U.S. military base across seven regional nations over the last two days.

The USS Abraham Lincoln, a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier commissioned in 1989, remains a colossal centerpiece of American naval projection. It deploys with a massive crew exceeding 3,200 sailors, supplemented by an additional 2,500 air wing personnel, and is equipped to carry over 60 distinct aircraft types. Having been positioned in the Persian Gulf for several weeks, the carrier has since relocated away from direct Iranian proximity, taking station in the Arabian Sea, positioned behind Oman’s mountain ranges.

Iran has already hit and significantly damaged two American vessels since the war began, including a U.S. MST Class Combat Support Vessel (fuel tanker) in the Indian Ocean, and an MSP Vessel (ammunition carrier) anchored off the UAE.