The United States said it launched a new wave of strikes on Iran after Tehran struck a ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it closed the waterway until further notice, and warned of a tough response to US “aggression,” according to official media.
Within hours of the US strikes, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said it had struck a US base in Jordan, while the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain were responding to missiles and drones from Iran.
This comes after incidents that occurred earlier this week in which three commercial tankers were attacked, leading to an exchange of blows with the United States.
US Central Command (Centcom) said it launched a third round of strikes this week after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard “blatantly attacked” a Cyprus-flagged ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
Centcom said the MV GFS Galaxy was “unable to continue its journey” as a result of significant damage to the engine room. She added that a civilian crew member is missing.
It said that the US strikes hit 140 Iranian military targets, including missile sites, drones, communications networks, and coastal observation sites.
UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it was informed by military authorities that the ship’s crew had been forced to abandon ship and were in a lifeboat.
“Iran had another opportunity to demonstrate its commitment to the MOU after being held responsible for previous attacks on commercial ships but failed again,” Central Command wrote in a statement shared with X.
This statement was shared by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who wrote: “Iran made a bad choice. Now they are paying.”
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard said that the United States targeted “a number of coastal bases and communications towers on the southern coast.”
In response, Iran said the “first phase” of retaliation included strikes on Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan, saying they destroyed the base’s command and control center and MQ9 drone hangars.
A map titled “IRGC Published Route Through the Strait of Hormuz” shows proposed shipping routes in red that pass through the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman. The roads pass near the Iranian islands of Qeshm and Larak, wrap around a shaded circular “danger zone,” and connect the Arabian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, with arrows indicating traffic in both directions; Neighboring countries (Iran, UAE, Oman) and distance scale are marked.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard said the ships should use their proposed route through the Strait of Hormuz
Earlier on Sunday, state media said Iran had closed the Strait of Hormuz until further notice after launching a naval cruise missile at a ship that was trying to sail along an unapproved route.
The Revolutionary Guard said that the ship “was hit by warning shots and stopped” after ignoring repeated instructions, according to a statement published by the official news agency.
It also warned that any American “aggression” as a result of the closure would be responded to “severely” and new bases in the region would be targeted.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who is also the country’s chief negotiator with the United States, wrote on X that “the era of unilateral deals is over.”
He continued: “We told you: Keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking on the door.”
Earlier this week, three commercial tankers were attacked while trying to cross a US-recommended route through Omani waters. Iran has repeatedly said that the only “safe” route is a separate route through its waters.
The incident led to a series of US strikes that killed 17 people and injured 115 others, according to Iranian officials. Iran responded with strikes on US allies in the Gulf.
This exchange led to increased tensions, as US President Donald Trump announced that the Iranian attacks meant the end of the ceasefire. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the United States of violating the agreement.
However, the US President said that the talks will continue and that the mediators are trying to revive the process. US media reported that Iran told US officials that the attacks on the tankers were a mistake and blamed a rogue internal group.
U.S. officials say they conveyed through intermediaries a request that Iran publicly declare that the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international shipping route, is open and pledge to cease fire on commercial ships.
The closure comes after a call for revenge against Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in his first public statement since assuming leadership.
His father and predecessor, Ali Khamenei, was killed in an airstrike on February 28, the first day of the US-Israel war against Iran. He was buried in his hometown of Mashhad on Friday.
Revenge is “the will of the nation,” the new Ayatollah said, reading a statement broadcast on state television.
He was quoted as saying: “We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs of these two wars, the criminal and shameful killers.”
“It does not depend on my personal presence nor on the presence of other officials. Whether we are present or not, it will happen.”
Many Iranians who participated in the funeral ceremonies over the past few days carried banners calling for the killing of US President Donald Trump, who warned on Saturday that any such plans would see Iran “annihilated and destroyed in response.”
The Wall Street Journal and other US media reported this week that Israel shared intelligence with Washington that Iran had recently developed a plan to assassinate the US president.
However, Trump denied that Tehran had devised a new plan or that Israel was the source of any intelligence. He told the New York Post in an interview that he had been “No. 1 (on Iran’s kill list) for a long time.”
Source: BBC
