WASHINGTON/TEHRAN/LONDON/DOHA – The United States completed a new round of strikes against Iran, hitting over 80 targets after three commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz were attacked, the US Central Command said Tuesday evening.
US forces "have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway," the command said in a post on X.
"The US strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz," said the command.
Explosions were heard near Iran's Qeshm Island and port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik, according to Iranian state outlet Press TV.
Iran's top joint military command said that its armed forces will give a "crushing response" to US attacks and will not allow US interference in the management of the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran-US talks
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that negotiations between Iran and the United States on a final agreement will not begin if the US threats continue.
He made the remarks in a post on social media platform X one day after US President Donald Trump said the US would either reach a deal with Iran or "finish the job", reiterating his earlier threats of targeting Iran's bridges and energy infrastructure.
"Negotiations on final Deal will not commence if threats continue. Honor your signature," Araghchi said, citing Paragraph 13 of the recently-signed Iran-US peace memorandum of understanding (MoU), which sets conditions for launching final agreement negotiations, including ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon.
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Tankers attacked near Hormuz
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) on Tuesday reported three separate attacks involving tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz, with no casualties reported in any of the incidents.
In the first incident, reported to UKMTO at 2119 UTC on Monday, a tanker was hit by an unidentified projectile on the port side, causing a fire, about 8 nautical miles east of Limah, Oman, while traveling southbound.
In the second incident, reported on Tuesday, a tanker was struck by an unidentified projectile and is believed to have sustained structural damage.
In the latest incident, reported to UKMTO at 1305 UTC on Tuesday, another tanker sustained minor structural damage. The vessel, which was hit by a drone, was continuing to its next port of call.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the identities of two of the three vessels have been confirmed: one is a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker, while the other is a Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker.
