US Launches Devastating Strikes on Iran in Retaliation for Hormuz Ship Attacks
The United States military has announced the completion of a major operation targeting Iranian air defences, missile launch sites, command networks, and military vessels in retaliation for Tehran’s latest attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The US military stated that its forces struck more than 80 targets in what it described as a ‘devastating strike against Iran to deliver a heavy blow’.
US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees military operations in the Middle East, announced that its forces launched offensive strikes targeting Iran’s air defence systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 small boats belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in and around the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, CENTCOM said the strikes were a ‘direct response to Iran’s latest attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz’. CENTCOM further described the operation as a ‘devastating strike on Iran to deliver a heavy blow for its targeting and attacking of commercial ships, which began with innocent civilians on international shipping lanes’.
According to CENTCOM, the operation aimed to degrade ‘Iran’s ability to continue attacking international commerce flowing through this international trade corridor’. Iran reportedly attacked three commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, including vessels belonging to Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Tehran has neither denied nor confirmed its involvement in the attacks. ‘Iran’s demonstrated aggression is unjustifiable, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire,’ CENTCOM stressed.
Iranian state media reported a series of explosions in several southern regions of the country in the early hours of Wednesday. CENTCOM added that its forces remain vigilant and ready to hold Iran accountable should the ceasefire agreement not be adhered to or respected.