New Wave of Iranian Attacks: IRGC Targets US Military Infrastructure in the Middle East
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran has announced that it launched a fifth phase of retaliatory attacks on Monday (13 July) targeting a number of American military facilities in Arab countries. The attacks were claimed to have targeted US military installations in Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.
In a statement published via the Sepah news agency, the IRGC said the missile and drone strikes were directed at the installations and military infrastructure of the American aggressor in Juffair, Bahrain, as well as long-range FPS air defence radar systems and ship-detection radar in Oman.
The IRGC claimed the strikes successfully damaged the radar systems in Oman while also hitting US military facilities in the area south of Manama, Bahrain. “In addition to targeting the facilities and military infrastructure of the United States in Juffair, Bahrain, which is now ablaze, the naval forces of the Revolutionary Guard Corps have also targeted and destroyed the long-range FPS air radar and ship-detection radar in the Sultanate of Oman,” the IRGC statement read.
Earlier, the IRGC also stated that it had launched a fourth phase of retaliatory operations by attacking a US ground-to-ground missile base in Kuwait in the early hours of Monday (13 July).
In its claim, Iran said the strike destroyed two HIMARS missile launchers along with a US missile storage depot. The IRGC once again asserted that the radar systems in Oman had been destroyed during the operation.
In addition to reporting the attacks, the IRGC also issued an ultimatum regarding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. According to the IRGC, the strategic shipping route will only be reopened if the United States ceases its military intervention in the region.
“Respect the sovereignty of states over their own coastal waters. The continuation of this intervention will trigger greater incidents in the global oil and gas sector,” the IRGC statement continued.
In recent days, the United States and Iran have continued to launch air attacks against each other, despite having previously agreed to a ceasefire and signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at ending the conflict.
On the other side, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces had carried out a new wave of attacks on dozens of targets in Iran from Sunday evening (12 July) until the early hours of Monday (13 July).
CENTCOM said US fighter jets, warships and military drones were used to attack various strategic targets in Iran. “Completing a new wave of offensive strikes against Iran, hitting dozens of targets in various locations using precision-guided munitions in order to degrade Iran’s capacity to continue attacking international shipping transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” it added.
The latest escalation between Washington and Tehran was triggered by a dispute over the status of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important energy trade routes in the world. Iran, through the IRGC, has repeatedly stated that the Strait of Hormuz is under its control and is currently closed. Meanwhile, the United States insists the shipping lane remains open to international traffic and is not under Iranian control.