U.S. Central Command said it conducted additional self-defense strikes across Iran on Sunday, targeting military surveillance, communication systems, air defense sites, drone storage, and mine-laying capabilities. The strikes follow an Iranian one-way drone that struck the Panama-flagged M/T Kiku early Sunday morning near the Strait of Hormuz, carrying over two million barrels of crude oil. CENTCOM stated that Iran had been given a chance to honor the ceasefire after yesterday's strikes but chose not to.
U.S. Central Command confirmed additional self-defense strikes against Iranian military targets overnight, according to a statement published by The Times of Israel. The strikes, which CENTCOM said were carried out after Iran was given an opportunity to honor a ceasefire following yesterday's strikes but elected not to, targeted assets that threatened U.S. forces and commercial shipping. This follows an earlier attack by an Iranian one-way drone that struck the Panama-flagged oil tanker M/T Kiku at 4:30 AM Eastern time (11:30 AM Jerusalem) near the Strait of Hormuz, carrying over two million barrels of crude oil.
This is the third wave of U.S. strikes in the region within 48 hours. On Saturday, CENTCOM launched expanded strikes targeting military radars, communication systems, air defense sites, and drone storage facilities in response to a new Iranian drone attack on a merchant ship — which The Zioneer reported at 00:48 Jerusalem on Sunday. That wave came after Friday's initial U.S. strikes in southern Iran targeting missile and drone sites near Sirik following a suicide drone strike on the Singapore-flagged M/V Ever Lovely, as The Zioneer reported on June 27 at 07:34 Jerusalem. The current operation, directed by the president, appears to target military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense sites, drone storage, and mine-laying capabilities.
The broader maritime confrontation in the Strait of Hormuz has been escalating since early June, when CENTCOM began disabling oil tankers attempting to breach a naval blockade of Iran, striking engine rooms with precision munitions. On June 11, The Zioneer reported CENTCOM completing additional precision strikes targeting military surveillance, communication systems, and air defense sites. The Zioneer also reported on June 10 that a total of eight vessels had been disabled since the blockade began on April 13.
What remains open: whether the M/T Kiku was disabled or only damaged, and whether further strikes are expected.
5 developments
- StrongCENTCOM completes additional precision strikes across Iran
- StrongUS expands airstrikes on southern Iran as Israel prepares for possible Hezbollah response
- DevelopingReport: Second wave of US strikes hits southern Iran as new explosions heard
- StrongUS military strikes Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz
Source and signal
- Internal intake