U.S. Military Hits Iranian Targets Near Strait of Hormuz After Shipping Attacks

U.S. Central Command announced that American forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets in Iran on Tuesday around noon Eastern Time, responding to recent attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and assaults on U.S. personnel in the region. The command did not specify how many sites were hit, their locations, or which military assets were used.

President Donald Trump posted on his social-media platform that the strikes were "large and powerful" and described them as retaliation for Iran's alleged attempts to place sea mines in the strait and a missile attack on a U.S. base in Jordan. He warned that any Iranian retaliation would be met with a "much harder and higher level" response.

A senior Iranian military source told state-run Tasnim News Agency that Tehran would respond with attacks "many times greater" than the U.S. strikes and cautioned that U.S. interests and bases across the region could come under fire.

The latest exchange follows a weekend of hostilities, including a U.S. strike on rocket launchers on Iran's Larak Island after reports that Iranian forces were preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines, and Iranian missile launches at U.S. sites in Jordan that were intercepted. The United Arab Emirates also reported intercepting an Iranian drone over its waters.

The U.S. Embassy in Qatar issued a security alert warning of possible unforeseen escalation, advising Americans in the region to remain vigilant amid potential flight cancellations, airspace closures and other travel disruptions.