Iran says it struck regional US sites and closed Strait of Hormuz

Iran said Sunday it attacked US military sites and support facilities in Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, widening a conflict that has also shut the Strait of Hormuz. The escalation threatens one of the world’s most important shipping lanes after another round of US strikes on Iranian military targets.

US Central Command said its latest operation hit Iranian radar, missile, drone, naval, ammunition, communications and coastal surveillance targets. CENTCOM said the strikes were meant to hold Iranian forces responsible for attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

US and Iran trade new strikes

CENTCOM said it hit about 140 military targets in the third round of strikes last week. It said more than 300 targets were struck over three nights to reduce Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels using the strait.

Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB said US air attacks hit the outskirts of Veysian in Lorestan province and a military base in Khondab. Officials in Bushehr province told local media that US forces also attacked Asaluyeh, Dir, Bushehr, Dashti and Tangestan.

Iranian authorities said assessments of casualties and damage were continuing. CENTCOM said the US strikes followed Iranian attacks on vessels in the strait, including an incident in which one crew member was missing.

The latest fighting followed the breakdown of a preliminary memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran. US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the ceasefire with Iran was over, and Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei pledged to avenge the killing of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in Israeli and US strikes on February 28.

Iran details attacks across the region

Iran has accused Gulf Cooperation Council states of helping US military operations by hosting bases and allowing the use of airspace. Iranian officials described Sunday’s attacks as a response to renewed US bombing along Iran’s southern coast.

IRIB said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed a heavy attack on logistics and refuelling sites used by US aircraft carriers at Oman’s Duqm port. The IRGC told IRIB the targeted sites were destroyed.

The IRGC said it fired ballistic missiles at Al Udeid airbase in Qatar and claimed it hit a fighter jet maintenance centre and a command-and-control centre. Qatar’s Ministry of Defence said Qatari forces intercepted incoming Iranian fire, and Qatar’s Ministry of Interior said three people, including a child, were wounded by falling shrapnel.

Iran’s army said explosive drones targeted a US Patriot air defence system, an ammunition depot and a radar site in Kuwait. Tehran also said it attacked a US communications system and radar site in Bahrain with drones.

In Jordan, the IRGC said it fired several ballistic missiles at US military facilities at Prince Hassan airbase. It claimed a command-and-control centre and hangars containing MQ-9 drones were destroyed.

Hormuz closure raises shipping fears

The IRGC said the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until what it called the end of US interference in the region. Iranian officials told state media that the US military was trying to create an illegal route through the waterway.

Iran said it fired a warning shot that hit a vessel using an unapproved route and later disabled a second vessel in the strait. Tehran says ships should use only routes approved by Iran, while the US and Gulf countries reject Iranian control over navigation there.

Oman condemned Iran’s attacks and said it was taking measures to protect residents and the country. Qatar’s Interior Ministry raised the security threat level and urged people to stay in safe places, while Kuwait’s army said it was responding to hostile aerial targets and Bahrain activated air raid sirens.

This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.