The US launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran early Monday after an Iranian attack on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz left the vessel ablaze and a crew member missing, further escalating the already massive tensions in the region.
Tehran responded with additional strikes against countries hosting US military assets, warning that recent American actions had effectively ended prospects for diplomacy.
The latest US strikes came hours after President Donald Trump said American forces had “hit them hard” and claimed Iran had agreed to a diplomatic deal before attacking a commercial vessel in the strategic waterway.
Despite the renewed fighting, Israel remained on the sidelines as of Monday morning, neither participating in the latest US operations nor appearing to be a target of Iran’s retaliation. Israel was not involved in negotiating the US-Iran memorandum of understanding aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz and launching talks toward a broader agreement.
In a statement issued during a third round of strikes late Sunday and into Monday, the US military said the operations were intended to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial vessels transiting the strait.
CENTCOM later said fighter jets, warships, aerial drones and naval drones had been used to target Iranian air defence systems, radar installations, missile and drone assets, and small boats.
“The Strait of Hormuz is a vital maritime corridor for global trade,” CENTCOM said. “Iran does not control it.”
It added that US forces remained prepared to ensure freedom of navigation despite what it described as Iran’s continued aggression, threats and interference.
Iranian state media confirmed explosions in several areas of the country, reporting that one person was killed and four others injured at a water pumping station in the south-western city of Mahshahr.
Reports also indicated strikes in southern and western Iran, including Qeshm Island, Bandar Abbas near the Strait of Hormuz, and parts of Khuzestan province bordering Iraq.
Iran’s powerful theocratic guard, the IRGC, rejected the US position, insisting Tehran retained authority over the waterway.
“The Strait of Hormuz is our territory, and we will not allow a rogue and child-killing army from the other side of the world to continue its illegal interference in it,” the Guard said.
The force claimed it had struck US military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, destroyed radar systems in Oman, and targeted fuel and ammunition facilities at Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan.
Missile sirens sounded three times in Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, while Kuwait said it intercepted incoming hostile fire. No immediate reports of damage were released.
Jordan’s military said it intercepted four Iranian missiles, adding that the incident caused no casualties or material damage.
Elsewhere, a base belonging to the armed wing of the Kurdistan Freedom Party, an Iranian Kurdish opposition group based in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, came under drone attack. The group said its Chamshar base was targeted, though no casualty figures were released.
Speaking to NBC on Sunday, Trump claimed Iran had agreed to a deal before launching an attack on a ship in Hormuz.
“We had meetings with them. They agreed to a deal yesterday. A perfect deal for us. No nuclear… They gave up everything, and then within an hour, they launched a drone at a ship,” Trump said.
It was not immediately clear which agreement he was referring to.
“I said, ‘You people are sick,'” he added, insisting that the Strait of Hormuz remained open and claiming the US had “bombed the hell out of them last night”.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the latest strikes, saying they had undermined months of diplomatic efforts.
“The US regime has also caused the return of insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz and disruption of international commercial shipping by openly interfering in the process of Iran implementing the necessary arrangements in the Strait of Hormuz,” the ministry said.
The governor of Qeshm Island said military sites had been targeted but reported no casualties.
Explosions were also reported in Bandar Abbas and the nearby city of Hajiabad.
A US official said several strikes targeted missile systems, air defences and Revolutionary Guard naval assets. Earlier on Sunday, the US military said it had struck around 140 targets, including missile launch sites, ammunition depots and communications infrastructure.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that a return to full-scale conflict would carry severe consequences.
“A return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences,” he said.
The latest operations were among the heaviest carried out by the US in recent days. Washington has launched three rounds of airstrikes in the past week in response to attacks on commercial shipping using routes near Oman that bypass Iranian territorial waters.
Iranian media reported that a naval officer was killed in the strikes. Tehran has continued to insist that it alone should oversee traffic through the strait and has suggested vessels may eventually be required to pay for passage.
“The era of one-sided deals is over,” parliament speaker and senior negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on social media.
“We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.”
Iran has warned that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until calm is restored and said additional military targets in the region could be attacked if further strikes occur.
The US, however, maintains that the waterway remains open. Military officials said more than 140 vessels had transited the strait over the past week, although maritime authorities noted that shipping traffic remains below normal levels.
Renewing calls for restraint, Pakistan, following a phone call with Iranian officials, said dialogue remained the only viable solution to resolving the conflict.
“Dialogue and diplomacy remain the only viable path to resolving disputes and achieving lasting peace,” he said.
