Over the weekend, the United States and Iran traded strikes on oil tankers, and the ripple effects have reached the cryptocurrency market. In the last 24 hours, gains have narrowed sharply, with Bitcoin dropping below the $80,000 mark at the time of writing.

The sudden volatility has triggered a massive liquidation event across digital asset exchanges. Data indicates that more than 62,000 traders have been liquidated within the past 24 hours, underscoring the extreme market sensitivity to geopolitical developments in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, on the diplomatic front, Iran has officially denied reports of an attack on its nuclear facilities. According to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, the Public Relations Department of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement on the 5th, dismissing claims that the Isfahan nuclear technology center and its nuclear facilities had been struck, labeling the reports as pure fabrication.

The statement elaborated that recent online claims regarding an attack on the Isfahan nuclear site are entirely baseless. It warned that disseminating such content amid the current sensitive situation is a tactic employed by hostile forces to create tension, disrupt public opinion, and incite panic among the populace.

Iranian authorities have urged citizens to rely exclusively on official institutions and credible media outlets for security-related information, cautioning against sharing unverified or unreliable sources. The statement further emphasized that relevant Iranian departments remain on high alert and are closely monitoring the movements of hostile forces.

In a separate development, the naval commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on the 5th that Iran had struck three American vessels and three oil tankers operating on unauthorized routes in the Strait of Hormuz. This action was taken in response to an earlier US attack on Iranian oil tankers that same day.

The commander issued a warning to all vessels in the Persian Gulf and near the Strait of Hormuz, advising them "not to be deceived by American forces" and to avoid engaging in "suspicious operations" on any unauthorized routes, stating that violators would become targets of attack. As of the time of this report, the US had not yet responded to these statements.

The US Central Command has confirmed its own military actions, releasing a statement on the 5th that American forces had "destroyed" three Iranian oil tankers. According to the statement, this operation was retaliation for attacks by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on two US warships patrolling "regional waters."

Details from the US Central Command reveal that an American aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer successfully evaded multiple Iranian attacks, with no US casualties reported from the missile strikes. In response, US forces targeted two Iranian oil tankers near Kharg Island and the southern port city of Jask, rendering them "permanently incapable of navigation."

Additionally, US forces conducted a strike on an empty tanker in the Gulf of Oman, breaching critical sections of its hull and "completely destroying" the vessel. Iranian media had earlier reported multiple explosions in the waters near Kharg Island, with one Iranian oil tanker being hit by a US missile in that area.

These coordinated military exchanges mark a significant escalation in US-Iran tensions, with the cryptocurrency market feeling the immediate impact as investors react to the heightened geopolitical risks.