Key facts
- The US military conducted a third round of strikes against Iran, targeting approximately 140 military sites.
- The strikes were in response to Iran's IRGC Navy attack on the M/V GFS Galaxy in the Strait of Hormuz.
- The M/V GFS Galaxy sustained significant engine-room damage and fire, with one civilian crew member missing.
- Iran carried out missile and drone attacks on Gulf states and announced the re-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
- US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth stated Iran would pay for its actions.
- An Iranian official warned that US strikes would not go unanswered and accused the US of failing to uphold commitments regarding the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States military conducted a third round of strikes against Iran, hitting approximately 140 military targets including missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, and communication networks. U.S. Central Command stated the strikes were directed by President Donald Trump and came in response to Iran's attack on the M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged container ship, in the Strait of Hormuz. The M/V GFS Galaxy sustained significant engine-room damage and fire, leaving a civilian crew member missing. US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth commented that Iran would pay for its actions.
An Iranian official warned that the US strikes "will not go unanswered" and accused Washington of failing to uphold commitments under a Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 16 regarding the Strait of Hormuz. During three nights of strikes this week, U.S. forces have struck more than 300 targets.
In response, Iran carried out missile and drone attacks on a string of Gulf states and announced the re-closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media reported blasts in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Jask, Qeshm Island, and Khuzestan province. Air raid sirens were heard in Bahrain and the UAE, while Qatar reported missile attacks that wounded three people. Kuwait said it was intercepting an attack, and Jordan reported three Iranian missiles falling on its soil. The IRGC claimed to have destroyed command and control centres, drone hangars, a radar site, and a jet maintenance centre in Jordan, Kuwait, and Qatar, as well as logistical support centres and refuelling facilities for US aircraft carriers at the port of Duqm in Oman.
The IRGC stated it struck and stopped a vessel ignoring repeated instructions to use an approved shipping corridor, and announced the Strait of Hormuz would be closed until further notice. US Central Command, however, stated that commercial vessels continue to transit through the waterway. The crew of the M/V GFS Galaxy abandoned the vessel and were rescued by local authorities. Of the 11 Indian nationals on board, 10 have been rescued, while one remains missing.
President Donald Trump declared that a ceasefire that had lasted several weeks was now effectively over. Iran's parliament speaker and top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, posted on X, "The era of one-sided deals is OVER. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking." Talks in Oman between Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and his Omani counterpart, Badr Albusaidi, were aimed at coordinating arrangements for shipping and transit in the Strait of Hormuz, with a Qatari delegation also present. Iran's new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, threatened vengeance for the death of his predecessor and father, Ali Khamenei.