WASHINGTON, Aug 30 – U.S. forces carried out their first confirmed military strikes against Iranian targets in about a month on Sunday, hitting rocket launchers near the Strait of Hormuz as tensions again rose around the strategically important waterway.
The strikes ended a period of relative calm in direct U.S.-Iranian military operations after months of intermittent conflict. The United States said the action was aimed at Iranian forces preparing to launch rockets and deploy sea mines in the strait, a vital route for global energy shipments.
Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command, said Revolutionary Guard forces had been observed preparing to launch rockets carrying sea mines into the waterway. The U.S. military had only recently completed operations to clear mines from international shipping routes in the strait.
Iranian semiofficial news outlets reported explosions near Larak Island, located in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard later acknowledged that several of its fighters and other Iranians had been killed or wounded.
The incident quickly raised fears that the conflict could again expand across the Gulf region. Iran subsequently said it had launched missiles toward U.S. military facilities in Jordan in retaliation for the American strikes.
Iranian state television broadcast footage it described as ballistic missiles being launched toward American bases in Jordan. Jordan’s armed forces later said they intercepted eight missiles that entered the country’s airspace early Monday.
U.S. officials rejected Tehran’s characterization of the strikes as an act of aggression. Central Command described the operation as a limited and precise action intended to counter an immediate threat to commercial shipping.
The command said Iran had created the danger by preparing to deploy mines in a major international shipping lane, and that American forces acted to protect civilian sailors, commercial vessels and the continued movement of goods.
The exchange represents a significant shift after weeks in which Washington had emphasized economic pressure and diplomacy over additional major military operations.
US shifts back toward military action as Hormuz tensions rise
The latest strikes came only days after the Trump administration announced that it intended to intensify economic pressure on Tehran rather than rely primarily on military force to bring the conflict to an end.
The administration’s strategy has included threatening additional penalties against governments, companies and other entities that continue doing business with Iran. The approach was presented as an attempt to weaken Tehran’s economy while avoiding another major escalation on the battlefield.
The decision to strike again suggests how quickly conditions around the Strait of Hormuz can alter Washington’s calculations.
Gen. Hossein Mohebi, a Revolutionary Guard spokesperson, called Sunday’s American action a serious mistake by the Trump administration. In a statement carried by Iranian media, he warned that the United States would face military and economic consequences.
A renewed cycle of attacks would pose significant risks throughout the Middle East. Since the war began on Feb. 28, Iran has targeted American military facilities and infrastructure in several Gulf countries, while U.S. and Israeli forces have conducted extensive operations against Iranian military and government targets.
The last U.S. military strikes against Iran that Washington publicly confirmed occurred on July 29. At the time, American officials said they had carried out a heavy wave of attacks against dozens of Revolutionary Guard positions, including coastal surveillance and defense facilities.
Days later, on Aug. 1, President Donald Trump said he would hold off on additional strikes after Gulf partners, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, urged restraint.
The pause also came amid growing concerns about the cost of the prolonged conflict. Months of fighting have placed pressure on American weapons stocks, particularly some precision munitions and air-defense systems. U.S. officials and defense analysts have warned that continued combat could affect American military readiness in other parts of the world.
The administration has also shown less urgency about returning to negotiations with Tehran. Trump said last week that he was “not in a hurry” to bring Iran back to the negotiating table, a notable change from earlier suggestions that he wanted a relatively quick conclusion to the war.
Trump has continued to argue that Iran’s leadership has been severely weakened by the campaign. He has also repeatedly highlighted damage inflicted on Iran’s military capabilities, particularly its navy and air force.
Iranian authorities, however, have portrayed the situation differently. Iranian officials have estimated that the country has suffered about $270 billion in direct and indirect economic damage during the conflict.
Israeli strikes during the opening weeks of the war also killed or removed large parts of Iran’s senior political and military leadership, according to the information provided by officials and Iranian authorities. Yet Tehran has continued to reorganize its security establishment and maintain its resistance to American and Israeli pressure.
Recent appointments to Iran’s senior security leadership have further indicated that the government intends to continue resisting external pressure. Tehran’s leaders have pointed to the country’s decades-long experience with sanctions and confrontation as evidence that economic pressure alone will not force it to surrender its strategic objectives.
Strait of Hormuz becomes Iran’s key source of leverage
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of Iran’s most important tools for exerting pressure on the international economy.
The narrow waterway connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and is a crucial passage for oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. Under normal circumstances, roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply moves through the strait.
Since the war began, however, commercial traffic has fallen sharply as shipping companies face the risks posed by missiles, drones, mines and other military threats.
Iran continues to possess missiles and drones capable of threatening ships moving through the waterway. That capability has given Tehran leverage even as its conventional military forces have suffered extensive losses.
Oil markets reacted quickly to Sunday’s U.S. strikes. U.S. crude rose 1.8% to $84.94 a barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, gained 1.9% to $89.79.
The price increases reflected renewed concern that fighting could disrupt one of the world’s most important energy corridors.
Iran has also maintained that the United States should not use the Strait of Hormuz until Washington fulfills commitments included in a memorandum of understanding signed with Tehran in mid-June.
Tehran has been working with neighboring Oman on a possible arrangement for managing the waterway. Iran has said that even if such a plan is implemented, American access should remain tied to Washington’s obligations under the agreement.
Trump, meanwhile, has repeatedly insisted that the Strait of Hormuz remains open. He said 24 vessels traveled through the waterway during the previous week.
That figure, however, is dramatically below the normal level before the war. Around 130 vessels typically passed through the strait each day under prewar conditions.
A multinational maritime coalition overseen by the U.S. Navy said Sunday that commercial traffic was continuing, but at significantly reduced levels.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization also reported a separate incident involving a tanker north of Khasab, Oman. The organization said an unidentified projectile struck the vessel on Saturday.
No casualties or environmental damage were reported, according to the organization, which cited military authorities. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the incident.
The U.S. military said it had redirected 83 commercial vessels and disabled three vessels as part of its blockade of Iranian ports as of Sunday.
With commercial shipping already operating far below normal levels, the latest exchange between Washington and Tehran has heightened concerns that the Strait of Hormuz could once again become the center of the wider conflict.
For governments and energy markets around the world, the immediate concern is whether Sunday’s limited U.S. operation remains an isolated action or becomes the beginning of another period of sustained military confrontation between the United States and Iran.