The latest attacks mark the fifth consecutive day of U.S. strikes targeting Iran’s ability to project force into the Gulf and attack oil tankers.
U.S. forces launched a new wave of strikes against Iran on Wednesday, expanding a campaign aimed at weakening Tehran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz as tensions between the two countries continued to escalate.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said the operation began at 6 a.m. ET on July 15 and targeted military capabilities that Iranian forces have used in attacks on vessels transiting the strategic waterway.
“At 6 a.m. ET today, U.S. Central Command forces began launching a wave of strikes against Iran,” CENTCOM said in a statement posted on social media. “The strikes are designed to further degrade military capabilities Iranian forces have used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.”
In a subsequent statement, CENTCOM said the morning operation ended at 7:30 a.m. ET and involved precision strikes against coastal defense systems as well as cruise missile storage and launch sites on Greater Tunb Island, a strategically located Iranian-controlled island near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.
The strikes mark the fifth straight day of U.S. military action against Iranian targets and come as Washington seeks to reassert control over one of the world’s most important energy corridors following a collapse in a fragile ceasefire agreement reached last month.
The uptick in military activity in the Gulf coincides with a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and coastal areas that resumed on Tuesday after Iran attacked commercial vessels and attempted to impose tighter control over shipping routes through Hormuz.
President Donald Trump signaled on Tuesday that the strikes could intensify in the coming days unless Tehran returns to negotiations.
“We’re going to hit them very hard tonight. We’re going to hit them very hard tomorrow night. We’re going to hit them very hard the night after,” Trump told Fox News on July 14.
“We’re going to knock out all their power plants, we’re going to knock out all their bridges, unless they get to the table and negotiate.”
By Tom Ozimek
