Key facts
- Multiple explosions were reported across southern Iran, including in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island, and Bushehr Province.
- US Central Command confirmed strikes against Iranian military facilities.
- The US strikes targeted surveillance systems, drones, and missile capabilities.
- Iranian authorities had not issued a statement on the cause of the incidents or confirmed casualties.
Multiple explosions were reported across southern Iran on Tuesday, with residents citing detonations in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island, Kish Island, Jam in Bushehr Province, and Abu Musa Island. The semi-official Fars News Agency confirmed explosions in the port city of Bandar Abbas and on the islands of Qeshm and Kish. Similar detonations were heard in Jam and on Abu Musa Island, near the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) disclosed strikes against Iran, marking the third consecutive night of attacks. CENTCOM stated the campaign imposed a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degraded their ability to target civilians and commercial shipping in the strategic waterway. CNN reported, citing US officials, that the operation targeted Iranian military facilities housing surveillance systems, drones, and missile capabilities.
Earlier reports indicated two powerful blasts rocked Iran’s southern port city of Bandar Abbas and southwestern Khuzestan province. Social media reports had speculated that Israel and the United States orchestrated these explosions, with claims that a top naval commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was targeted in Bandar Abbas. However, Israeli officials denied any involvement, and Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency called the reports about targeting a commander "completely false."
Iranian state media reported a powerful explosion in an eight-storey building on Moallem Boulevard in Bandar Abbas, destroying two floors, several vehicles, and shops. No deaths were reported at the time of filing. A separate blast in Iran’s Khuzestan province reportedly killed four people, attributed to a gas explosion in Ahvaz city. State media indicated the causes of both blasts were under investigation.
These incidents occur amid heightened tensions between Iran and the United States. President Donald Trump had recently threatened a "Venezuela-style operation" in Iran if Tehran did not negotiate a nuclear deal, warning of a "massive Armada" heading towards Iran.