The U.S. military retaliated against the Iranian regime with a new round of overnight strikes just hours after President Donald Trump vowed to “hit them hard.”
The U.S. launched the strikes after Iran attacked oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, directly breaching the ceasefire signed three weeks ago. Iran, on Thursday, declared that it was widening the military conflict, launching strikes on Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait.
“In Kuwait, the military said falling debris wounded one person as it shot down three ballistic missiles, a cruise missile and 10 drones. Bahrain said it shot down incoming fire, without elaborating,” the Associated Press reported. “There was no immediate word of damage in Qatar.”
Thursday afternoon, Iran boasted of launching a strike on U.S. base in Jordan, Sky News reported:
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has struck a US air base in Jordan, Iranian state media have reported.The base, located in Al-Azraq, and a command and control centre in “West Asia” were hit with ten ballistic missiles at 2:20pm local tirelme (11:50am UK time), according to the report.
According to Central Command (CENTCOM), the U.S. “forces completed an additional round of strikes against Iran, July 8, to further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Strikes concentrated along Iran’s southern coast targeted air defense systems, missile installations, and drone facilities. They “struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline,” CENTCOM said in a statement on Thursday.
“The latest strikes follow successful execution of offensive strikes in Iran the night before,” CENTCOM added, referring to the previous round of strikes on 80 Iranian military and terrorist targets.
Explosions were reported in the southern Iranian province of Bushehr, which houses oil facilities and a Russian-built nuclear power plant. “Several explosions have been heard in the Bushehr province,” Sky News (UK) reported Thursday morning, citing regime media sources. “Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said several locations in the city of Bushehr were attacked last night.”
The BBC reported “authenticated footage showing the aftermath of overnight US strikes on the southern Iranian town of Kuhestak, in Hormozgan province near the Strait of Hormuz.” The clip “shows multiple fires and smoke at what appears to be a fishing dock,” the broadcaster added.
Iran chose to escalate after burying Ayatollah Khamenei following a weeklong funeral ceremony. For days, regime loyalists held processions in Tehran and other cities, calling for “death” to the U.S. and Israel, and the assassination of President Trump and members of his administration.
Mojtaba Khamenei, the regime’s new Supreme Leader and son of the slain Ayatollah, appears to be hiding for fear of a U.S. or Israeli strike. “Iran buries its slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday at the country’s holiest shrine, with his son and successor Mojtaba Khamenei still hidden from public view after being disfigured in the strike that killed his father,” Reuters reported Thursday.
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