The US unleashed its military might on Iran after the regime attacked a commercial vessel and declared the Strait of Hormuz closed Saturday.
“Iran made a poor choice. Now they pay,” Secretary of War Pete Hegseth posted on X.
The Islamic Republic attacked the M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged container ship, according to United States Central Command.
REUTERS
A civilian crew member from the ship is now missing and the vessel suffered significant engine room damage in the strikes, CENTCOM added.
The agency vowed that Tehran would pay a “heavy cost” and said that the retaliation, which began at 7:15 Eastern Time, was being carried out under the direction of the commander in chief, President Trump.
“Iran was provided yet another opportunity to demonstrate adherence to the Memorandum of Understanding after being held accountable for earlier attacks on commercial vessels but has again failed,” CENTCOM said in a statement on X.
Explosions were heard in the southern Iranian cities of Bushehr and Asaluyeh early Sunday local time, Iranian state-run media reported.
Several Iranian military installations were targeted in the strikes, including ground-to-air missile launchers, drone and missile storage facilities and launch sites, and surveillance radars, a US official told Axios’ Barak Ravid.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed to have fired a “warning shot” at the Cyprus-flagged ship, which was traversing an “unauthorized route.”
The IRGC threatened that any US strikes would be met with a “severe” response.
“Following this incident … the Strait of Hormuz will be closed until further notice and until the end of the American interventions in this area, and no vessels will be allowed to pass through it,” it said in a statement.
Iran’s attack came after the Trump administration issued an ultimatum to Tehran on Friday, demanding that the regime publicly declare that the Strait of Hormuz was open for business and that there would be no further attacks on shipping.
Meanwhile, diplomats from both sides feverishly tried to resuscitate negotiations after Trump declared the cease-fire was off.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has asked us to continue ‘talks,” Trump posted on Truth Social Friday.
“We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them, in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER!”
Earlier this Saturday, before hostilities erupted, Iranian and Omani representatives met in Muscat to discuss the crucial international waterway.
The two nations weighed a proposal to divide the Strait of Hormuz — through which 20% of the world’s oil supply flows — into two routes.
