U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) on Tuesday announced the completion of a new round of retaliatory strikes against Iran in response to alleged Iranian attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement, CENTCOM said U.S. forces struck over 80 Iranian targets including air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 small boats of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The statement again accused Iran of violating the ceasefire and undermining freedom of navigation.
In a post on X earlier on Tuesday, CENTCOM said that the strikes were "to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway."
Explosions were heard near Iran's Qeshm Island and in the southern port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik in the early morning hours of Wednesday, according to Iranian state outlet Press TV.
The same day, the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran's main military command, issued a statement, condemning the U.S. strikes as a flagrant act of aggression and violation of its previous commitments, Iran's state television reported.
Iran's armed forces will deliver "a crushing response" and will not allow the U.S. intervention in the management of the Strait of Hormuz under any circumstances, the statement said.
The statement also reiterated that shipping lanes designated by Iran are the only safe routes for oil tankers and merchant vessels transiting the strategic waterway.
IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohbi said the Iranian air defense systems shot down a U.S.-made MQ-9 drone over the Khormuj region in Bushehr Province following the U.S. strikes.
Also on Wednesday, air raid sirens were activated in both Bahrain and Kuwait. Earlier, Iranian media reported multiple explosions in Bahrain.
US completes new round of strikes as Iran vows "crushing" response
