The United States launched a major new wave of air strikes against Iran early Wednesday, targeting more than 80 military sites in what officials described as a direct response to Tehran’s latest attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.According to the US Central Command (CENTCOM), American forces used precision-guided munitions to strike Iranian air defence systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) small boats operating in and around the strategic waterway.The operation followed attacks on three commercial vessels — the Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, the Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan and the Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity. CENTCOM said the strikes were intended to degrade Iran’s ability to target international shipping and “impose heavy costs” for attacks on civilian vessels transiting one of the world’s busiest trade routes.US officials said the latest offensive was significantly larger than the retaliatory strikes carried out in late June, with one official saying Washington intended to hit roughly eight times more targets because Iran had failed to heed previous warnings. The military operation reportedly lasted several hours and also targeted Iranian port facilities, ground-to-air missile systems, coastal surveillance sites, anti-ship cruise missile launchers and drone infrastructure.Explosions were reported in the Iranian cities of Qeshm, Bandar Abbas and Sirik, according to Iranian state media. Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi accused Washington of violating the interim ceasefire agreement, while the Iranian Foreign Ministry condemned both the strikes and the US decision to revoke a licence that had temporarily allowed the sale of Iranian oil under the truce.The latest escalation came hours after three merchant vessels were struck in the Strait of Hormuz, with one tanker catching fire off the coast of Oman. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said the other two ships sustained damage but continued their voyages without casualties. The attacks marked the highest number of shipping incidents in the waterway in a single day since April.The renewed military exchange also unfolded during the funeral ceremonies for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, complicating efforts to negotiate a permanent end to the conflict, fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz and revive talks over Tehran’s nuclear programme. The waterway remains one of the world’s most strategically important maritime routes, carrying around a fifth of global oil and natural gas trade in peacetime.
