Military targets missile and drone sites after cargo ship attack in Strait of Hormuz
Idrees Ali And Enas Alashray
Updated ,first published
Washington/Dubai: The US military attacked Iran in response to an Iranian drone attack on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz, with both countries accusing the other of violating ceasefire terms agreed to last week.
U.S. Central Command said the planes hit missile and drone depots and coastal radar sites on Saturday before a U.S. official declared the operation complete. Iran said a shell hit the perimeter of a pier in Sirik in southern Iran, and Iranian naval forces responded by hitting US military targets in the area.
But there were signs of progress elsewhere, with Israel and Lebanon signing an agreement to end the conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah. Both sides framed the agreement as a first step calling for Hezbollah to disarm and Israel to withdraw its troops from Lebanon, but it was unclear how the agreement would be implemented. Hezbollah said it would not cooperate.
Tehran has said it will control the Strait of Hormuz and warned Gulf states not to side with Washington after an attack on a cargo ship traveling near the coast of Oman on Thursday. US President Donald Trump blamed Iran for the attack and said it violated the agreement signed last week.
In its statement announcing the attacks, US Central Command said, “The unwarranted attack by Iranian forces on commercial ships clearly violated the ceasefire,” and described it as “a strong response to yesterday’s attack on a commercial ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz.”
The US military said it would continue to provide “safe passage coordination and support” to commercial ships passing through the strait.
US Vice President J.D. Vance, once seen as a skeptic about US intervention in Iran but now seen as the Trump administration’s point person on the conflict, said Americans respect the ceasefire agreement, also known as a memorandum of understanding.
Vance told
Iranian state media, citing an unnamed military source, reported that the attack was carried out after an explosion was heard in the port of Sirik. The source said that about five hours ago, numerous warning shots were fired from Sirik against ships violating Strait of Hormuz regulations, and two warning missiles were also launched towards the strategic waterway from the nearby Karpan region.
According to the statement in the state media, the Revolutionary Guard stated that in response, its navy “hit the places where the terrorist US army is deployed in the region” and warned that future attacks by the US would be met with a broader response.
The guards said the ceasefire agreement gave Iran control over ship traffic in the strait.
The Revolutionary Guards said, “However, the USA tried to violate this commitment by provoking various fronts, and the necessary response was given and will continue to be given. If the attack is repeated, our response will be broader than this.”
The United States did not immediately respond to the report of Iran striking American targets, a tactic aimed at undermining U.S. allies in the region during the conflict.
In response to the latest attacks, Ibrahim Azizi, chairman of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said Trump had not committed to the principles of negotiation or ceasefire.
“This reckless violation of the ceasefire will, as always, lead to withdrawal and regret,” Azizi said in a post on X.
Before the renewed violence, oil prices fell nearly 3 percent on Friday, heading for steep weekly losses, in response to the exit of oil tankers from the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass.
Saudi Aramco has resumed crude oil loadings at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf, the world’s largest oil port, after a nearly four-month halt, according to shipping data.
The increase in fertilizer shipments through the Bosphorus helped reduce concerns about the increase in global food prices.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who wrapped up a trip to the Gulf to reassure regional allies about the interim pact, issued a joint statement with the Gulf Cooperation Council calling for “free, unconditional and unrestricted navigation” in the strait without tolls or “attempts to assert control.”
Iran’s foreign ministry has said the strait should be managed by Iran and Oman, while Ali Akbar Velayati, a top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, warned Washington’s Gulf allies that their survival depends on Tehran’s tolerance.
