Iran claimed on Sunday that its forces targeted a US sea drone as it attempted to enter what it called a "restricted" area in the Strait of Hormuz, but the US military later denied Tehran's claim, as the standoff in the key waterway keeps escalating.

In a statement on Iranian state television, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed it launched an attack on an "unmanned surface vessel" off the south coast of Iran, saying that “the aggressor United States must understand that it has no choice but to leave the region and stop its acts of mischief.”

A spokesman for the US Central Command CENTCOM, which coordinates US military operations in the Middle East, later said the Iranian claim is "a total lie".

CENTCOM also announced on Sunday that the US military redirected 92 commercial vessels, disabled three, and boarded two others to "ensure strict compliance" with the US blockade of the Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.

The United Kingdom's Maritime Trade Operations Center (UKMTO) announced on Sunday that 59 ships have transited the strait over the last 48 hours.

The US-Iran war of words on Sunday comes after the IRGC claimed on Saturday that it had also carried out strikes on three oil tankers and three US-linked vessels in the Strait.

The US military did not confirm Iran's claims.

The Iranian claim followed the CENTCOM announcement earlier on Saturday that its forces had struck three Iranian oil tankers in response to what it said were ballistic missile strikes launched by the IRGC against two US navy warships on Friday.

Admiral Brad Cooper, the commander of CENTCOM, announced the US strikes on the Iranian tankers by warning Tehran, saying "let the message to the IRGC be clear: If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost —taking out three of yours. We will not hesitate to defend American forces, and if necessary, destroy Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet," he said.

"Following Iran’s failed attacks, CENTCOM permanently disabled the IRGC crude oil carriers M/T Downy off the coast of Kharg Island and M/T Stark 1 near Jask," it said in a statement. "American forces also completely destroyed the unladen crude oil carrier M/T Kylo (also known as the “Noxen”) in the Gulf of Oman, striking the vessel in multiple critical locations to render it inoperable after the crew was directed to abandon ship".

"A U.S. aircraft carrier and guided-missile destroyer successfully evaded multiple unprovoked Iranian attacks. No American personnel were harmed," it added.

The Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Mohsen Rezaei told Iranian media on Sunday that “48 hours ago, we tested Iran's anti-ship missile for the first time above a U.S. naval vessel," adding that "this special missile turned into a nightmare for the Americans, forcing them to flee.”

Iran's use of anti-ship ballistic missiles against US navy vessels for the first time on Friday marks a significant escalation of Iranian military actions and a turning point in its military doctrine against the US.

Meanwhile, as CENTCOM shared video footage on social media showing its strikes on the Iranian tankers, Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused the US on Sunday of using fake AI videos, by saying that “the leaders of that country find themselves in a state of desperation, resorting to empty words, slogans, and artificial intelligence to generate photos and videos from the battlefield."

Ghalibaf warned that any new attacks on Iran will “meet a faster, heavier and more painful response."

“Our recent operations against aggressor bases were merely a start. If they have not realised it yet, they must understand before it is too late that the rules of the game have changed," Iran's parliament speaker said.

The conflict reignited last Sunday after US forces targeted Iranian rocket launchers and other military installations along the Iranian southern coast.

The IRGC later confirmed that the strikes had hit multiple locations and then launched missile and drone attacks in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain.