WASHINGTON - The US has said it struck Iranian military sites over the weekend while Tehran said it responded by targeting an American base, marking the third known escalations in a week around the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command (Centcom) said it launched ‘self-defence strikes’ in response to ‘aggressive Iranian actions’, which it said included a US drone being shot down over international waters.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had targeted an air base used by US forces for an attack on southern Iran, without specifying the location.
Meanwhile, Kuwait, which hosts a US base, said early on Monday its air defence system was ‘confronting hostile missile and drone attacks’ without providing further detail.
It is the latest exchange between the two sides after negotiations on a deal to end their months-long war failed to advance over the weekend, with US media reporting President Trump had requested changes to its terms.
The changes are related to the Strait of Hormuz shipping channel and the removal of highly enriched uranium, the BBC’s US news partner CBS News reported. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Iran’s chief negotiator said on Sunday that Tehran would not agree to any deal unless Iranian rights were fully secured.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform early yesterday that Iran ‘really wants to make a deal, and it will be a good one for the USA’. He urged his critics to ‘sit back and relax, it will all work out well in the end’.
The US military said it had on Saturday and Sunday conducted ‘self-defence strikes on Iranian radar and command and control sites for drones in Goruk, Iran and Qeshm Island’.
In a post on X, Centcom said US fighters struck the Iranian military’s air defences, a ground control station and two drones that it said ‘posed a clear threat to ships transiting through regional waters’. No American personnel were injured in the attacks, the military said.
The Strait of Hormuz remains blocked as attacks continue despite ceasefire negotiations. (Pic: BBC)