Published On 7 Jul 2026
The United States military says it has completed a round of air strikes against Iran, with bombings reported in several locations in the south of the country
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the strikes began on Tuesday and were conducted “in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz”
Recommended Stories
list of 3 items
- list 1 of 3Canadian province sues OpenAI over alleged ChatGPT-linked shooting warnings
- list 2 of 3Prolonged hospitalisation of US Republican Mitch McConnell raises questions
- list 3 of 3Trump lashes out at NATO as first day of summit wraps in Turkiye
end of list
CENTCOM said that the strikes had hit “over 80 targets with precision munitions” before concluding the strikes approximately four hours after they began
Iranian military leaders have vowed a “crushing response” to the attack, adding that they would not allow foreign interference in the management of the Strait of Hormuz
Iranian media reported several explosions in the southern port city of Sirik, where projectiles were said to have hit commercial and fishing piers, as well as Qeshm Island and areas near Bandar Abbas
The US strikes targeted Iranian air defence systems, coastal surveillance systems, surface-to-air missiles, antiship cruise missiles and drone launch sites, an unnamed US official told the Reuters news agency. Iranian state media reported that several people were injured by shrapnel at the Sirik commercial pier
“According to state TV, six explosions have been heard on the island of Qeshm, which is the largest island in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz, with very geostrategic significance when it comes to Iran’s control and authority over the Strait of Hormuz,” Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi reported from Tehran
“The state TV also says that at least seven explosions have been heard in the areas close to Sirik Port, which is very important because it oversees the Strait of Hormuz, another strategic point from which Iran imposes its control and authority over the Strait of Hormuz,” Asadi said
Advertisement
“Starting from the time after the signing of the [memorandum of understanding], we have been witnessing limited confrontation and escalation in this highly escalated situation at the Strait of Hormuz,” he added
So far, there has been no response from Iran’s military, Asadi said. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who was in Iraq for the funeral procession of Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, headed back to Iran after the attacks
Following the blasts, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it held the US government responsible for the consequences of breaching the memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreed between the two countries in June, which was supposed to put an end to the war the US and Israel began against Iran in late February. The MoU mandated lifting the US naval blockade on Iran in exchange for Tehran reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz
The US also agreed at the end of June to waive sanctions on Iranian oil for 60 days
However, the US Department of the Treasury on Tuesday moved to revoke the temporary suspension of sanctions on Iranian oil, less than 20 days after the MoU was signed. The department cancelled a licence announced in June that had allowed Iran to produce, sell and deliver crude oil and related products through August 21
Mohammad Ghalibaf, Iran’s chief negotiator called the reinstating of oil sanctions “major MoU violations” by the US, citing “attacks on southern Iran” as further violations
The move by the Treasury Department comes after tankers in the Strait of Hormuz were attacked. A Qatari tanker caught fire off the coast of Oman Monday after being struck by an “unknown projectile” in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)
Iranian television reported claims that the liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings, but Tehran did not directly claim the assault. Neither CENTCOM nor Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commented on the incident
A second ship, a Saudi-flagged crude oil tanker, was also damaged in the Strait of Hormuz when the IRGC fired missiles
A US official warned that Iran’s attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz were “wholly unacceptable” and would be met with consequences, Reuters reported Tuesday
“We’ve been there before,” Al Jazeera’s Mike Hanna reported from the White House, referring to the reciprocal attacks exchanged between the US and Iran in late June. “The response by the US is in retaliation for what it says is Iran breaking the MoU, which provides a basis for the ceasefire.”
Advertisement
“But to understand the background to this, Iran, since the signing of the MoU, has insisted that shipping transiting the Strait of Hormuz do so by a northern route, which is closer to Iran and which it effectively controls,” Hanna said. “The US has been urging ships to go through what it says is a US Navy southern protected route.”
In response to Tuesday’s missile attacks, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said it would take any measure it deemed necessary to safeguard the country’s interests and national security
“The United States’ action in revoking the waiver for the exemption of sanctions on Iran’s oil sales constitutes a blatant violation of Article 10, and the subsequent military operations of this country against Iran also constitute a serious violation of Articles 1 and 2 of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding,” Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, said in a post on social media
Gharibabadi said the US has “repeatedly” violated the MoU, citing Israeli attacks in Lebanon and threatening statements made against Iran
