A new wave of U.S. military strikes against Iran was launched by the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), targeting more than 80 Iranian military facilities and assets. Washington said the operation was carried out in response to attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, accusing Tehran of violating the ceasefire.

CENTCOM announced early Wednesday that it had conducted a fresh operation against Iran, striking more than 80 targets with precision-guided weapons.

According to the command, the strikes were a direct response to recent Iranian attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

Targets hit by U.S. forces

The U.S. military said the operation targeted key Iranian military capabilities.

“U.S. forces struck Iranian air defence systems, command-and-control networks, coastal radar installations, anti-ship missile launch capabilities, and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fast attack craft in and around the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM said.

According to the statement, the objective was to reduce Tehran’s ability to continue attacks against international commercial shipping.

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints for global trade and energy security.

Iran claims it struck 85 U.S. military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had targeted 85 U.S. military installations in Bahrain and Kuwait in retaliation for what it described as a “violation of the ceasefire” following the U.S. strikes in southern Iran.

Earlier, both Bahrain and Kuwait activated missile warning sirens after Iranian armed forces warned of an “overwhelming response” to the American attacks.

Kuwait’s armed forces announced in the early hours of Wednesday that they were responding to “hostile missile and drone attacks,” shortly after the U.S. military said it had completed airstrikes on Iran, hitting “more than 80 targets.”

“Kuwait’s air defences are currently intercepting hostile missile and drone attacks,” the military said in a post on X, without explicitly identifying the source of the attacks.

Air raid sirens also sounded in Bahrain, according to the kingdom’s Interior Ministry.

“The siren has sounded,” the ministry said on X, urging citizens and residents to remain calm and proceed to the nearest safe location.

Both Kuwait, which hosts major U.S. military facilities, and Bahrain, home to the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, have repeatedly come under Iranian missile and drone attacks since the outbreak of the Middle East conflict on February 28.

Attacks on three commercial vessels

CENTCOM said Iranian forces attacked three commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz before the U.S. strikes.

The vessels were identified as the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker M/T Al Rekayyat, the Saudi-flagged M/T Wedyan, and the Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity.

The U.S. command described Iran’s actions as “unjustified aggression,” saying they represented “a clear and dangerous violation of the ceasefire” and posed a threat to freedom of navigation.

“The U.S. is prepared to hold Iran accountable”

In its statement, CENTCOM stressed that U.S. forces remain on high alert.

It added that the United States is prepared to hold Iran accountable should the agreement collapse or any further violations occur.

The latest military operation has further escalated tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, with the international community closely monitoring developments in one of the world’s most strategically important shipping lanes.

Iran: “We will take decisive measures”

Iran warned the United States against what it called this latest “violation” and said it would “take decisive measures to protect its interests and national security,” Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi wrote on X.

Iranian state media reported multiple explosions near the Strait of Hormuz.

“Iran’s actions in the Strait are completely unacceptable from the U.S. perspective and will not go unanswered,” a U.S. official told reporters on condition of anonymity, after the Treasury Department announced a ban on “new transactions” involving Iranian hydrocarbons.

Against the backdrop of the renewed escalation, U.S. benchmark WTI crude rose 2.63% to $72.29 a barrel shortly after Asian markets opened.

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz had resumed following the signing of a memorandum of understanding, though operations remained far from normal.

In late June, two vessels were struck by projectiles of unknown origin. The U.S. military blamed Tehran for the attacks and launched airstrikes on Iran two days later. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks against neighbouring Gulf states, particularly Kuwait and Bahrain, before both sides agreed to suspend hostilities.

Disputes over the future of the Strait remain unresolved

Saudi Arabia condemned what it described as Iran’s targeting of the Saudi tanker Wedyan and the Qatari tanker Al Rekayyat, calling the incidents “an attack on the security of international shipping and global energy supplies.”

Earlier, Qatar summoned Iran’s chargé d’affaires and demanded an explanation for the attack on its vessel.

Qatar also delivered a formal protest note, urging Tehran to “immediately cease any actions that undermine regional security” and to refrain from jeopardising global energy supplies.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei rejected Qatar’s accusations as “unacceptable.”

Separately, the UK’s Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency reported two additional attacks on Tuesday—one involving an unidentified projectile against a tanker and another involving a drone strike. The agency did not attribute responsibility for either incident.

In all cases, UKMTO said there were no casualties or environmental pollution.

Despite U.S. opposition, Tehran has ruled out any return to the pre-war status quo, under which passage through the Strait of Hormuz was unrestricted and free of charge. Iran has also warned vessels against attempting to bypass the designated route along its coastline.

The latest escalation comes as Iran has been holding six days of funeral ceremonies since Saturday ahead of the burial of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed during the initial U.S.-Israeli strikes. His body was transferred to Iraq on Tuesday for ceremonies in Najaf and Karbala, home to some of Shia Islam’s holiest sites.