The US military said it had launched new strikes on targets in Iran just hours after President Donald Trump said a cease-fire accord with Tehran was "over" and threatened to "hit them [Iran] hard tonight."Speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 8, he also said that the Iranian leadership were “scum,” “liars,” and “loco” after sirens wailed in Bahrain and Kuwait, where authorities said they were dealing with hostile strikes."At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz," the US military said in a social media post. "The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway."
Iranian state media reported explosions in the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Konarak and Chabahar. The open source intelligence monitor OSINTdefender posted verified video on its X account showing an explosion in the southern port city of Chabahar, as well as reporting other strikes against targets in the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of Southern Iran.As of late on July 8, there were no reports of Iranian counter strikes.It is the second night in a row that the United States has launched military strikes against Iran and comes a day after it revoked a key sanctions waiver covering Iranian oil sales after accusing Tehran of attacking commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.The moves mark the most serious crisis since the United States and Iran signed a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU) last month aimed at ending hostilities and reopening one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints.
