The US Central Command said on Tuesday that the military is launching more strikes against Iran.
A U.S. official said that U.S. forces carried out additional airstrikes on military targets in Iran earlier on Tuesday to eliminate “emerging threats.”
The official, who declined to be identified, did not provide further details, saying only that the number of additional raids was limited.
In contrast, official media reported that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said on Tuesday that as long as the United States continues its “evil actions” in the Middle East, not “a drop of oil or gas” will be exported from the region.
The Revolutionary Guard also stated that the United States’ “attacks” will only delay the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, adding that its forces’ attacks on what it describes as American facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain are in response to American attacks on Iran.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Tuesday that the Strait of Hormuz is an integral part of Iran's national security, and that Iran will exercise its sovereignty over it no matter what.
He added in an interview with state television that Tehran is not currently bound by any of the terms of the memorandum of understanding signed between Islamabad and the United States.
Iran’s Qeshm Island in the Gulf was shelled on Tuesday, according to Iranian state broadcaster IRIB, which quoted local officials who attributed the attack to the United States, amid renewed fighting between Washington and Tehran.
The state broadcaster quoted the Hormozgan governor's office as saying that "at 19:00, a site on Qeshm Island was bombed by the American enemy."
Fars News Agency had earlier reported hearing explosions on the island located at the Strait of Hormuz.
“Several explosions were heard around 18:45 on Qeshm Island,” she said, adding that the Masan area of the island had been repeatedly targeted by “the American enemy” in recent days.
Iran’s official news agency (IRNA) reported that the United States launched attacks on the southern provinces of Khuzestan and Hormozgan, which overlook the Persian Gulf.
She noted that explosions were heard in the cities of Sirik and Behbahan in Hormozgan province, while attacks continued on the city of Bandar Abbas.
Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. Central Command, said on Tuesday that Iran had deliberately attacked seven commercial vessels in the past seven days, resulting in the death, injury, or disappearance of more than ten civilian crew members.
He added in a statement on social media, “Iranian forces also launched dozens of missiles and drones towards neighboring Gulf states.”
This attack comes as the United States has launched new strikes against Iran, and as US President Donald Trump has announced the reimposition of a naval blockade on Iran. Tehran has responded by carrying out strikes on targets in several countries in the region.
Earlier, the US Central Command announced it had bombed military targets in cities in southern Iran overlooking the Gulf, with the aim of “weakening Iran’s ability to attack commercial vessels.”
The UAE announced on Tuesday that two of its oil tankers were attacked by Iranian missiles in the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in the death of one crew member (an Indian national). Following the incident, India summoned an Iranian diplomat in New Delhi on Tuesday to formally protest the attack.
Kuwait also announced today, for the second time in a matter of hours, that it had intercepted aerial attacks. Meanwhile, Bahrain's Ministry of Interior activated air defense sirens, urging citizens and residents to remain calm and seek shelter, hours after Manama announced it had intercepted similar Iranian attacks.
A crisis response company reported a mysterious explosion of unknown origin on board a Norwegian oil tanker off the coast of Oman.
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