US forces struck 10 Iranian military targets in and near the Strait of Hormuz overnight, US Central Command said on Sunday, in response to a drone attack on a commercial tanker.
In an apparent reference to the same attack, the UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre, a Royal Navy arm with a regional office in Dubai, said on Saturday that it had received a report of a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz being hit by an “unidentified projectile.”
The crew was unharmed and no environmental damage was reported, although the vessel sustained damage to its bridge, the UK body said.
CENTCOM said that US Navy and Air Force aircraft targeted surveillance infrastructure, communications systems, air defences, drone storage sites and minelayer capabilities after Iran launched a one-way drone that hit the Panama-flagged ship around 4:30 am. The vessel was carrying more than two million barrels of crude.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, President Donald Trump warned of further military action if Iran continues attacks.
"United States aircraft just struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN! It is very possible that they will never learn!" Trump wrote.
"There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!"
Tehran had been given an opportunity to honour the ceasefire but “elected not to," CENTCOM said on Sunday, adding that commercial traffic through the waterway continues and warning that US forces "remain vigilant, lethal, and ready."
The strikes followed Friday's US action tied to a separate Iranian attack on another ship a day earlier.
“U.S. aircraft struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites after Iran hit M/V Ever Lovely on June 25 with a one-way attack drone,” CENTCOM stated at the time. “The Singapore-flagged cargo ship was exiting the Strait of Hormuz along the Omani coast at the time of Iran’s attack.”
Iran said on Saturday it attacked US-affiliated military targets in the Middle East in response to renewed American strikes against it the previous day, while Bahrain confirmed it had been attacked by Iranian drones in the early morning hours.
To get more news, click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.