DUBAI: The United States on Saturday said it had carried out strikes on Iranian missile and drone storage facilities as well as coastal radar sites in response to a drone attack on a commercial vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz, marking a fresh escalation in tensions despite a fragile ceasefire arrangement between Washington and Tehran.
According to the US Central Command (CENTCOM), the operation targeted Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar installations after the Singapore-flagged cargo vessel M/V Ever Lovely was struck by a one-way attack drone while exiting the Strait of Hormuz along the Omani coast. The US described the strikes as a “powerful response” and said the attack on the commercial ship violated the existing ceasefire.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) condemned the strikes, saying they violated understandings reached between the two sides. Iranian officials also reiterated their position that a recent memorandum of understanding grants Tehran authority over traffic management in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest exchange has intensified concerns over maritime security in one of the world’s busiest energy corridors and raised fresh uncertainty over ongoing US-Iran negotiations aimed at preventing a wider regional conflict.
