US strikes ‘over 80’ Iranian targets after tankers hit in Strait of Hormuz

US forces said they launched “over 80” strikes on Iranian targets in response to Iran’s targeting of tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran said it had retaliated with strikes against Bahrain and Kuwait.

The attacks came just hours after Washington also pulled Tehran’s license to sell oil, which was only issued last month following an interim ceasefire deal.

The strategic waterway remains a flashpoint in the fragile truce, having sparked a previous exchange of fire between the two sides after a cargo ship was struck, threatening the agreement aimed at ending the war.

In a statement on X early on Wednesday, the American military 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.

“U.S. forces struck Iranian air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats in and near the strait to degrade Iran’s ability to continue attacking international commerce flowing through the international trade corridor.

“Iran recently attacked three commercial vessels transiting the strait, including Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan, and Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity.”

The statement said the “unwarranted aggression by Iranian forces” marked a “clear and dangerous violation of the ceasefire and undermines freedom of navigation”, adding: “CENTCOM forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed.”

Bahrain, which plays home to the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, and Kuwait – where US Army personnel are based – sounded missile alerts early on Wednesday.

A statement by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard confirming strikes on military sites in their neighbouring countries said the “child-killing and terrorist U.S. army” had “openly violated the ceasefire” with attacks on coastal bases and civilian stations.

Following the US strikes, Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused the US of committing “major” violations of the initial ceasefire deal between the two parties, known as the Islamabad memorandum of understanding.

In a post on X, he said the violations included “Persistent threats of further strikes”, “Reinstating oil sanctions” and “Attacks on southern Iran”.

“The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don’t fold,” Mr Ghalibaf said.

Three civilian vessels were hit in the strait on Tuesday – the most in a single day since late April, according to UN International Maritime Organisation figures.

In response, maritime authorities have raised the threat level from “substantial” to “severe”.

The renewed hostilities threaten to again disrupt shipping transiting the Gulf channel and cause difficulties in securing a permanent end to the conflict, launched by the US and Israel on 28 February.

President Donald Trump has said the US would either reach a deal with Tehran or “finish the job”.

Speaking at the Nato summit in Turkey on Wednesday morning, Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte said the US strikes were “absolutely necessary”.

He told reporters: “When you have a ceasefire and Iran is basically violating the ceasefire… I think it is totally crucial that the US forcefully reacts.”

Meanwhile, tensions have been running high in Iran with the holding of funeral ceremonies for the former supreme leader, former Iranian Supreme Leader, the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the opening attack of the war.

Ending Tehran’s stranglehold on the strait, which disrupted global oil and gas supplies and drove up fuel and food prices, had been a key demand in previous negotiations.

However, the initial deal reached between the US and Iran only secures safe, toll-free passage of the waterway for 60 days, pending the outcome of a final agreement on Tehran’s disputed nuclear plans.

The pact also leaves it to Iran and Oman, in conjunction with other Gulf states, to “define the future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz”.

In the meantime, Iran has continued to try and exert leverage over the channel, including demanding ships seek permission to transit and raising the spectre of future charges.

This has included claims by Tehran that only it is permitted to carry out mine clearance in the strait under the terms of the interim agreement, after Oman agreed to work with Britain and France to make sure the sea route remained open.

The two allies have been at the forefront of a proposed international mission to protect and reassure vessels using the waterway once hostilities are over.

But Iran warned that the involvement of any other country in the channel would amount to a provocation.

A joint statement issued by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron last Friday said: “The Strait of Hormuz is a vital artery for the global economy. Restoring safe transit for ships of all nations through the Strait is a matter of global concern.

“The Sultanate of Oman has agreed to work with the United Kingdom and France to ensure that its sovereign territorial waters are safe for navigation.

“The UK and France also stand ready to deploy the wider multinational military mission to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”

The two leaders added: “The United Kingdom and France reaffirm their shared commitment to regional stability, respect for the sovereignty of all states, and their willingness to maintain close co-operation with their partners in order to uphold global security, freedom of navigation and international law.”