US and Iran exchange missile strikes

Tehran has targeted US military assets after what the Pentagon claimed were “self-defense strikes” on an Iranian island

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps has said it targeted US military assets in the Persian Gulf region in retaliation for American attacks. US Central Command said its forces intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones and carried out “self-defense strikes” on Qeshm Island.

The incident began after a US warplane fired a Hellfire missile at an Iranian-linked tanker near the Strait of Hormuz late on Tuesday, damaging its engine room. Washington said the Botswana-flagged M/T Lexie was heading toward Kharg Island in breach of its unilaterally imposed blockade.

In response, the IRGC said it targeted an alleged US-affiliated vessel named Panaya with naval missiles.

US forces then apparently proceeded with a strike on an IRGC telecom tower, in what CENTCOM later called “self-defense strikes on an Iranian military ground control station on Qeshm Island.”

The IRGC then escalated with ballistic missile strikes on a “US air and helicopter base in a regional country,” as well as “the Fifth Fleet’s command center” in Bahrain.

The US Department of War said Iran had launched several ballistic missiles toward regional states, but claimed that all failed to hit their targets. Two missiles fired at Kuwait fell short or broke apart en route, while three missiles launched at Bahrain were intercepted by US and Bahraini air defense forces, the command said.

The Kuwaiti army confirmed it was responding to missile and drone attacks, with alarm sirens sounding in the country at least twice overnight. Bahrain’s Interior Ministry also urged the public to “remain calm and head to the nearest safe place” amid an air alert.

The IRGC warned that any violation of security in the Strait of Hormuz would bring a “harsh price” for the US military. CENTCOM meanwhile said its forces “remain vigilant and ready to defend against unwarranted Iranian aggression during the ongoing ceasefire.”