The US carried out another round of military strikes on Iran at President Donald Trump’s direction, after a Panama-flagged oil tanker was attacked near the Strait of Hormuz, further escalating tensions between the two countries despite a fragile peace agreement reached just two weeks earlier.
The strikes mark the second consecutive day of US military action linked to attacks on commercial shipping in the region since Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at securing long-term peace and stability in West Asia. The ongoing strikes in the Persian Gulf show the danger of the Iran war again spinning out of control, even after Iran and the US reached an interim deal to try to agree on a final accord to end the conflict.
CENTCOM releases videoย
US Central Command, in a post on X, said that US military aircraft targeted 10 Iranian militaryย targets at multiple locationsย in and near the Strait of Hormuz forย Iran’s drone attack on the oil tanker Kiku.
CENTCOM said that in this latest attack, Iranian forces attacked the oil tanker Kiku with a one-way drone. The tanker was laden with more than two million barrels of crude oil and sailing through the Strait of Hormuz. According to ship tracking websites, the Kiku left a Qatari oil field in the middle of the Persian Gulf earlier in the week and was bound for a port in the United Arab Emirates that sits on the Gulf of Aman, just on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz.
US military aircraft targeted Iranian military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense sites, drone storage facilities, and minelayer capabilities.
Trump warns of ‘military action’
Amid the fresh US strikes, Trump issued a fresh warning to Tehran, saying that any further hostile action by Iran could force Washington to launch additional military operations. He warned that such action would have severe consequences for the Iranian regime.
“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! 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!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
JD Vance on ceasefire violation
US Vice President JD Vance, who has led the negotiations with Iran, said on social media Friday night that Iran should “pick up the phone” if there are disagreements about the ceasefire agreement, “but violence will be met with violence.”
The US and Iran are negotiating the terms of the deal, including issues such as getting ships through the strait that’s vital to global supplies of oil and natural gas and addressing the future of Iran’s nuclear program and stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
Under the interim deal, the two sides have 60 days to work out the details. Ending the fighting in Lebanon between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group is a key part of the deal.
Also Read: WATCH: US releases video of strikes on Iran as Tehran says attack failed to cause any damage
Also Read: Peace agreement in limbo? US, Iran trade strikes over attack on vessel in Hormuz