US launches third round of strikes after Iran says it closed the Strait of Hormuz

The Iranian navy declared the Strait of Hormuz closed on Sunday after firing warning shots at a ship it said was on an "unapproved route." The United States responded with a third wave of airstrikes against Iran, the Central Command (CENTCOM) said, targeting roughly 140 Iranian military facilities, including missile and drone sites, ammunition depots and coastal surveillance installations. The strikes were described as an effort to hold Iranian forces accountable for the attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship, the M/V GFS Galaxy, which was damaged and caught fire in the waterway.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported retaliatory attacks on U.S. bases and radar sites in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, claiming to have destroyed a radar installation in Kuwait and a command-and-control centre at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, as well as logistical support facilities for U.S. aircraft carriers in Oman.

India confirmed that one of its nationals aboard the GFS Galaxy remains missing, while ten crew members have been rescued. Pakistan's foreign minister urged restraint from all parties and emphasized dialogue as the only viable path to stability.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported that the damaged vessel caught fire and its crew abandoned ship near the Omani coast. The United Arab Emirates and Bahrain reported missile-related sounds and advised residents to seek safety.

"Iran made a poor choice. Now they pay," U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on X, reposting the CENTCOM announcement.

The latest escalation follows a June memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran that pledged safe passage for commercial vessels through the strait, a provision Tehran says it will honour only under its own arrangements.