Washington [US] / Tehran [Iran], September 2: The United States is attacking Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz, US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump spoke of "large and powerful" strikes which he said were "in retaliation for the Iranians' failed attempt at adding sea mines to the Strait (of Hormuz)."
He reiterated his earlier claim that there are currently no sea mines in the strait, which is vital to the global oil trade.
Trump also presented the new US attacks as a response to the recent Iranian missile strikes on US military bases in Jordan, which he said had been successfully repelled.
The US president spoke of a "very justified" US attack.
Trump also warned Iran against further attacks on the United States.
"If the failed Nation of Iran retaliates for this very justified attack, they will be hit again at a much harder and higher level," he asserted.
But, he added that such a US response "will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!"
Tehran also issues threats
Iran for its part threatened retaliatory strikes of its own following renewed US attacks on its territory.
The General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces and the Khatam al-Anbiya military headquarters stated in a declaration carried by state media that the enemy would be dealt devastating blows; the more chaos the US caused in the region, the heavier the losses it would suffer.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also threatened the US with severe punishment. Iranian state media reported explosions in several regions of the country late Tuesday. These are said to have affected the island of Qeshm and the city of Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz, as well as the Konarak area further east and the port city of Chabahar.
Explosions were also reported on the island of Lavan in The Gulf. There were initially no reports of injuries or damage.
Over the weekend, the conflict in The Gulf had escalated militarily for the first time in weeks, with mutual attacks. US forces had once again struck targets in Iran, and Iran responded by firing on two US military bases in Jordan.
What the military and US media are reporting
The US military had previously announced its new attacks against Iran. These had begun at 12 noon US Eastern Time (1600 GMT) and were directed against Revolutionary Guard targets within the country, CENTCOM - the US military command responsible for the region - stated on the platform X.
The attacks were a response to the Revolutionary Guards' recent attempts to attack merchant shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and US troops stationed in the region, it was stated.
The US news portal Axios reported that the attacks were part of a plan that Trump and his senior advisers had been considering in recent days.
This plan envisages limited strikes in the Strait of Hormuz to prevent Iran from rebuilding its radar and missile capabilities to attack ships, Axios reported, citing US officials.
According to the report, the plan was drawn up by CENTCOM last week. The idea behind it is to reduce the risk of Iranian attacks on oil tankers as well as US military ships and aircraft, Axios quoted a US official as saying.
Source: Qatar Tribune
