Translated with AI
The US military launched two series of strikes against Iranian military and infrastructure facilities, and also attacked an oil tanker in the Persian Gulf. In response, Tehran reported strikes against US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait, Deutsche Welle reported, citing US Central Command (CENTCOM) and Iranian media.
According to CENTCOM, the first wave of strikes targeted facilities in the port area of Sirik, located on the coast of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Mehr news agency also reported three airstrikes on the major port of Bandar Abbas. Furthermore, a US strike partially damaged a fishmeal plant near Qeshm Island.
According to Iranian news agencies, targets in the city of Ahvaz in Khuzestan Province were also hit. Explosions were also heard in the city of Rasak and the port of Kenarak in Sistan and Baluchestan Province.
During the second wave, CENTCOM reported, US forces struck Iranian command posts, air defense facilities, missile and unmanned aerial systems, and coastal surveillance facilities. The command stated that the goal of the operation was to further reduce Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the region.
There were no reports of civilian casualties.
Additionally, US forces attacked an empty oil tanker that CENTCOM said was attempting to enter an Iranian port in the Persian Gulf, violating the existing naval blockade.
According to US command, the commercial vessel M/T Belma, sailing under the flag of Curacao and heading to Kharg Island, ignored warnings. A US military aircraft then disabled the tanker by firing Hellfire missiles at its smokestack.
CENTCOM recalled that the naval blockade of vessels traveling to or from Iranian ports was reinstated on July 14. According to the command, two commercial vessels were diverted during the first 24 hours of the restrictions, and weapons were used against another.
In retaliation, Iran launched strikes against US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait. According to state television channel IRIB, at least ten explosions rocked the US Navy's Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain. The Mehr news agency also reported explosions at the US base in Kuwait.
Amid the escalation, Saudi Arabia and Jordan partially closed their airspace.
Iranian news agencies also reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' air defense forces claimed to have destroyed an American MQ-9 drone.
Meanwhile, US Vice President J.D. Vance stated that the development of the situation around Iran remains complex, but, in his opinion, events are moving in the right direction.
"I don't know where this is all going to go, but I think we're fundamentally moving in the right direction. It's just going to be a very challenging process, with a lot of pauses and restarts," Vance said on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
According to him, the United States simultaneously continues to exert economic pressure on Iran and is negotiating with representatives of the Iranian leadership, whom Washington considers more pragmatic.
