The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that U.S. forces targeted a number of the Islamic Republic’s military targets during a “defensive” operation in southern Iran. According to CENTCOM, these strikes were carried out in response to “threats by Iranian forces” against U.S. personnel.
Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for CENTCOM, stated that the targets of the operation included “missile launch sites” and “Iranian vessels engaged in mine-laying operations.” He emphasized that the U.S. military “continues to defend its forces while maintaining restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”
According to a Reuters report, a senior U.S. official told Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin that two vessels affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) were destroyed while laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Additionally, U.S. fighter jets bombed a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system in Bandar Abbas that had targeted American aircraft.
Griffin also cited two informed sources stating that these strikes were “defensive in nature” and do not signal the end of the ceasefire between Tehran and Washington. She further reported that, according to U.S. officials, the American military operations “have concluded for now.”
