US strikes Iran missile sites and mine laying vessels as Trump’s promised peace deal remains elusive | US-Israel war on Iran
The United States launched an offensive in southern Iran to test a seven-week ceasefire as Tehran negotiators began new talks in Qatar, with both sides downplaying hopes for an imminent peace deal.
US central command (Centcom) said on Tuesday that US forces had targeted missile launch sites and boats attempting to lay mines, but stressed that the attacks did not indicate the end of the ceasefire with Iran.
Calling the action “defensive,” Navy captain Tim Hawkins said Centcom “continues to defend our forces using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”
In Iran, the news site Tabnak, which is believed to be close to former Revolutionary Guard chief Muhsin Rezaei, identified the four dead Guard soldiers who the United States said were killed in attacks on boats. Iranian state television also reported explosions around the city of Bandar Abbas, which hosts a military port and a dual-use airport in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state news agency Mehr later said the situation was “completely under control” and that residents need not worry.
The strikes, the second major attack during a seven-week ceasefire, took place as Iranian parliament speaker Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf led a delegation of negotiators to Qatar. Local media reported that Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and central bank governor Abdolnaser Hemmati were among the group.
Hemmati’s presence fueled speculation that talks would focus on the release of frozen Iranian assets. In the deal currently being negotiated with the United States, Washington will reportedly agree to the release of some Iranian assets held in banks outside Iran, including Qatar.
Trump has faced criticism from his party’s loyalists over reports that billions of dollars in frozen assets could be given to Tehran; Top Republicans said the reported details of the peace deal appeared too close to the nuclear deal negotiated by the Obama administration in 2015, from which Trump withdrew.
The negotiated memorandum of understanding envisions Iran resuming commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but does not include negotiations on any nuclear issues. Talks on Iran’s nuclear program will take place within a period of 30 to 60 days following any agreement.
Trump has said his primary goal in the war is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon containing highly enriched uranium, and he is under increasing pressure to include a commitment to destroy Iran’s stockpiles in an initial deal.
On Monday, he appeared to offer a concession to Tehran by announcing on social media that enriched uranium held in Iran could be “destroyed” within the country in a process overseen by an international nuclear agency.
The fate of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile has been a major sticking point in various rounds of talks between Washington and Tehran. In previous talks with the United States, Iran has stated that it is willing to dilute the purity of enriched uranium but will not allow the transfer of stockpiles to the United States or Russia.
Experts said Trump’s announcement on Monday could amount to a major concession from the US president, as negotiations appear to have slowed down after intense diplomatic activity over the weekend.
Reopening the Strait of Hormuz has become an urgent issue for the Trump administration, which is months away from midterm elections in the United States and is facing voter anger over rising costs.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a deal was still possible despite recent U.S. attacks on Iran and that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened “one way or another.”
“There were some talks going on in Qatar today, so we’ll see if we can make progress. I think there was a lot of back and forth about certain language in the first document,” Rubio told reporters in Jaipur during an official visit to India.
Iran has said the future management of the strait, through which about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passes, will be an issue for Oman and Iran to reach agreement on, and “fees for navigation services” could be imposed.
In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump said talks with Iran were going “well” but warned of new attacks if they fail. This will “just be a Big Deal for everyone, or no Deal at all,” he wrote.
Iran insisted that the ceasefire in Lebanon, which would allow the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, be included in the memorandum of understanding.
On Monday, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would intensify attacks against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Israel and Lebanon agreed to a ceasefire in mid-April, but Israel continued airstrikes against Hezbollah, which was not party to the ceasefire, which it said were acts of self-defense.
via Reuters
