Latest strikes against Iran

US Military Hits 80 Iran Targets After Strait of Hormuz Attacks

The U.S. military released unclassified footage Tuesday showing its latest strikes against Iran after a new round of attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to U.S. Central Command, American forces hit more than 80 targets in the operation. CENTCOM said the strikes were carried out with precision munitions and were meant as an immediate response to Iranian attacks on vessels moving through one of the world’s most important shipping lanes.

The Strait of Hormuz is a major route for global energy shipments. When Iran targets ships there, it is not just a regional problem. It threatens trade, fuel markets, allies, and international shipping crews trying to do their jobs.

Earlier Tuesday, Tehran reportedly struck three ships, including a Qatari natural gas vessel. CENTCOM identified the targeted commercial vessels as the Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, the Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan, and the Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity.

The U.S. described Iran’s actions as “a clear violation of the ceasefire.”

In its statement, CENTCOM said, “U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces completed a new round of offensive strikes against Iran, July 7, hitting over 80 targets with precision munitions as an immediate response to Iran’s latest attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”

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Iran's Violation of sovereignty and security condemned by Kuwait and United Arab Emirates

Iranian missile fired at Americans intercepted, but wreckage still leaves injuries

Even as President Donald Trump is working with his negotiators, who are working with Iran's negotiators, on a plan to turn down the heat from Islamist hostilities in the Middle East, Iran has launched a missile that has injured several Americans.

The ballistic missile was aimed at a U.S. base in Kuwait, and although it was intercepted, the wreckage still rained down, injuring several people.

The New York Post report said the missile was "in retaliation for the American military knocking out Iranian drones in the Strait of Hormuz."

"This egregious ceasefire violation by the Iranian regime occurred hours after Iranian forces launched five one-way attack drones that posed a clear threat in and near the Strait of Hormuz," CENTCOM said in a social media statement.

"All drones were successfully intercepted by U.S. forces which also prevented a sixth drone launch from an Iranian ground control site in Bandar Abbas. U.S. Central Command and regional partners remain vigilant and measured as we continue to defend our forces and interests from unjustified Iranian aggression."

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Self-Defense Strikes in Iran

US Military Carries Out ‘Self-Defense Strikes’ on Iranian Boats, Missile Launch Sites: CENTCOM

The strikes were designed ‘to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,’ CENTCOM said in a statement.

The U.S. military carried out “self-defense strikes” on Monday in southern Iran, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

CENTCOM spokesman Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins said the strikes targeted Iranian missile launch sites and boats “attempting to emplace mines” in southern Iran.

“U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Hawkins said in a statement to The Epoch Times. “U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”

Iranian news outlets reported that explosions were heard late Monday in the southern city of Bandar Abbas and near Sirik and Jask. It is unclear what caused the blasts or whether they stemmed from the U.S. strikes.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on May 25 that both nations have “reached understandings on many issues,” but that an agreement to end the war is not imminent at this stage.

Read more at The Epoch Times

Iran's oil tankers disabled

U.S. forces on Friday enforced blockade measures

Two Iranian-flagged, unladen oil tankers attempting to pull into an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman in violation of the ongoing blockade were involved, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).

The tankers, M/T Sea Star III and M/T Sevda, were reportedly disabled through strikes from a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet from USS George H.W. Bush, preventing them from entering Iran.

U.S. forces also disabled the Iranian-flagged M/T Hasna on May 6, as it attempted to sail to an Iranian port in the Gulf of Oman, when an F/A-18 Super Hornet from USS Abraham Lincoln disabled the unladen oil tanker's rudder, hitting it with several rounds from a 20mm cannon gun. All three vessels are no longer transiting to Iran.

"U.S. forces in the Middle East remain committed to full enforcement of the blockade of vessels entering or leaving Iran," said Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander said Friday. "Our highly trained men and women in uniform are doing incredible work," he added.

CENTCOM said that multiple commercial vessels have been disabled and more than 50 have been redirected, and announced on Friday that American forces are currently blocking more than 70 oil tankers from entering or leaving Iranian ports as part of a sweeping maritime enforcement operation.

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Defending International Shipping

US Strikes Deliver Crushing Blow to Iran’s Air and Naval Power

CENTCOM Releases Visual Proof

U.S. Central Command put video into the public record this week showing strikes that hit Iranian naval and air targets. The footage presented by CENTCOM is meant to make a simple point. U.S. forces are actively degrading Tehran’s ability to threaten shipping and regional partners.

Keep in mind governments release curated footage to make their case. Even so the imagery makes clear a serious kinetic campaign is under way and that American pilots and sailors are striking targets of consequence.

President Donald Trump Frames The Campaign--President Donald Trump publicly described these actions as part of a broader operation to remove hostile capabilities.

He reported the destruction of multiple mine laying vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and signaled more action to come.

That is the kind of public clarity many observers say is designed to deter Tehran and reassure allies who depend on freedom of navigation in a critical global waterway.

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U.S. targets ISIS in Syria

US Launches Airstrikes Inside Syria, Eliminating 75 ISIS Targets

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) conducted dozens of airstrikes on known ISIS camps and operatives in central Syria on Sunday to prevent the terrorist organization from taking advantage of the demise of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s regime.

After Assad’s family ruled over Syria for more than 50 years, Assad was forced to flee Syria to Russia, where he was granted asylum, when a coalition of largely radical Islamist groups led a sweeping offensive across Syria and captured the country’s capital city.

CENTCOM announced on Sunday that it has conducted strikes against ISIS leaders, operatives and camps as part of an ongoing mission to “disrupt, degrade and defeat ISIS.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement on Sunday that the people of Syria “finally have reason for hope,” adding the U.S. “strongly supports a peaceful transition of power to an accountable Syrian government” through a Syrian-led process that is inclusive.

“The Assad regime’s refusal since 2011 to engage in a credible political process and its reliance on the brutal support of Russia and Iran led inevitably to its own collapse,” Blinken said. “During this transitional period, the Syrian people have every right to demand the preservation of state institutions, the resumption of key services, and the protection of vulnerable communities.”

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