US Central Command announced that American forces began carrying out strikes against Iran at 03:00 Jerusalem time Thursday, describing the operation as a powerful response to Iranian attack attempts against US troops in the Middle East on Wednesday.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed at 03:00 Jerusalem time that American forces have begun striking Iran, describing the operation as a "powerful response" to attempted Iranian attacks on US troops in the Middle East on Wednesday. The confirmation marks the official start of the latest round of direct military action between Washington and Tehran.
The confirmation came after a rapid series of reports and official statements that began at 02:13 Jerusalem, when a senior US official told Barak Ravid of N12 that the US military was striking Iran. Minutes later, Axios reported the same, and CENTCOM and the US Army issued their own confirmations. The sequence of reports, all published by The Zioneer within the same minute, reflected the swift escalation from initial unverified reports to official confirmation.
The strikes are the latest phase in a sustained US air campaign against Iranian strategic infrastructure that began in late June, as The Zioneer has reported. The campaign has included eight consecutive nights of strikes in mid-July. The US previously informed Israel of its intention to carry out "powerful strikes" on Iran, according to an Israeli source cited by Al-Arabiya on July 8.
Details of the strikes' targets, scale, and damage assessment are not yet available. The Iranian regime has not issued a statement. The region remains on high alert for potential Iranian retaliation.
8 developments
- StrongCENTCOM completes five-hour strike wave across six Iranian sites
- ConfirmedUS strikes Iran for third straight night, deploys unmanned attack drones and vessels
- DevelopingCENTCOM strikes Iranian maritime capabilities, missile storage in eighth night of retaliatory operations
- StrongCENTCOM completes 13th straight night of strikes on Iran, hitting command centers and UAV depots
Source and signal
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