US strikes on IRGC targets
The US military began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran on Tuesday, saying the action followed attempted attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and US service members in the region. US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the strikes began at 1600 GMT, according to a statement on X. "The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region," CENTCOM said.
Iran's Fars news agency reported explosions in the areas of Bandar Abbas, Sirik, and Qeshm, and said local authorities had reported strikes in the districts of Chabahar and Konarak.
The latest strikes mark the first known US attack on Iran since President Donald Trump paused a renewed military campaign in late July, and come amid a renewed escalation between Washington and Tehran, with the two sides trading attacks after weeks without known direct US strikes on Iran.
Background: Sunday strikes and retaliation
Hostilities resumed on Sunday when the US carried out fresh strikes on what it said were IRGC minelaying forces in the Strait of Hormuz, its first military action in the waterway in a month. The US military on Monday carried out what CENTCOM described as "limited, precise action" against two rocket launchers on Larak Island, which it said were being prepared to "launch rockets and deploy sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz."
The IRGC confirmed strikes had hit Larak Island and warned of a "retaliatory response." Iran's IRGC said the US attack killed two people and wounded two others, and vowed "response and punishment." It then said on Monday that its forces had carried out attacks on two US bases in Jordan and a base in the UAE. Jordan's military said it intercepted eight missiles early Monday. Iranian state television reported that Iranian forces had targeted an air base in the UAE with drones, but the UAE's Ministry of Defence denied the report as "unfounded", while confirming that it had shot down a drone.
CENTCOM rejected Iran's claims that its Sunday strikes were an "act of aggression" and said its forces were responding to an "imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz." In a statement, CENTCOM said: "In essence, Iran created the threat and the S. military eliminated it to protect civilian mariners, commercial shipping, and the free flow of global commerce."
Views from Tehran and Washington
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in a statement quoted by state television, said: "We are not seeking war, but we will deliver a decisive response to the aggressors." Iran's foreign ministry said it "strongly condemned the American military aggression on Larak", describing the strikes against bases in Jordan as "legitimate defence".
US President Donald Trump told Fox News that the US would "hit them hard" in response. CENTCOM also rejected an earlier IRGC claim that a supertanker had struck sea mines and caught fire while attempting to navigate the Strait of Hormuz, saying: "This is yet another IRGC attempt to intimidate regional commercial shipping through disinformation." Trump has claimed that mines placed by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz had been detonated or removed, warning that any vessel deploying new mines would be destroyed. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi dismissed that claim as a "propaganda" deception.
Strait of Hormuz: a strategic flashpoint
The latest escalation centres on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global shipping route between Iran and Gulf states. The waterway is about 33 km wide at its narrowest point and has become a major flashpoint since the conflict began. The strait previously carried around 20 per cent of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war, according to the Times of India; Euronews reports that it usually carries around a quarter of global seaborne oil trade. Iran has demanded that tanker traffic pass near Larak Island for checks and has reportedly required vessels to pay $2 million to cross.
Washington and Tehran have been locked in conflict since late February, when the US and Israel launched a first wave of strikes on Iran. Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz following those strikes, and it has since become a key sticking point in peace talks with the US. The effective closure of the strait has caused significant fluctuations in global oil prices.
Broader context: sanctions and blockade
The US announced a fresh sanctions campaign on August 24 aimed at further isolating Iran and expanding secondary sanctions against countries and entities supporting it. The US is maintaining a naval blockade of Iran, with CENTCOM saying on Saturday that its forces had disabled three vessels, boarded two and redirected 82 as part of the blockade.