US Central Command announced it had struck Iranian missile depots, drone storage facilities, and coastal radar sites on Friday, June 26, as a forceful response to Iran's attack the previous day on the Singapore-flagged merchant vessel M/V Ever Lovely in the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM said the strikes were conducted by US Air Force aircraft and targeted sites used in the June 25 drone strike on the commercial ship. The US military said it remains ready to ensure freedom of navigation through the strategic waterway.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced late Friday evening that it carried out strikes against Iranian missile depots, drone storage sites, and coastal radar installations in response to an Iranian attack on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.
The strikes, executed by US Air Force aircraft on June 26, targeted facilities used in the June 25 suicide drone attack on the Singapore-flagged M/V Ever Lovely, which was exiting the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman. CENTCOM described the Iranian action as a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement and an escalation that undermines freedom of navigation for global trade passing through the vital waterway.
As The Zioneer reported in its earlier coverage of this tit-for-tat sequence (June 26, 20:40 Jerusalem), the strikes represent the latest round in a cycle of attacks and retaliation over the past week involving Iranian drone and missile strikes on commercial shipping and US military assets, and US responses targeting Iranian infrastructure.
CENTCOM stated that it continues to coordinate safe passage and support for commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, and remains present and ready to ensure all terms of the agreement with Iran are respected and fully enforced. No official assessment of damage or casualties from the US strikes has been released by CENTCOM beyond the planned target list.
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