Iran's Revolutionary Guard said on Thursday it targeted a US airbase after the US military carried out what a Washington official said were strikes targeting an Iranian drone operation near the Strait of Hormuz, hours after US President Donald Trump rejected a report he was close to a compromise deal with Tehran.
The escalation in hostilities highlighted threats to the tenuous ceasefire between the US and Iran that took effect in early April, dampening hopes for a peace deal and sending oil prices surging again.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the military site that was struck was an Iranian ground control station in Iran's Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone.
"These actions were measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire," the official said.
Strikes reportedly triggered by Iran launching drones at a commercial vessel
According to an Axios report, a senior US official stated the strikes were triggered by Iran launching drones at a commercial vessel attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it targeted a US base in response to what it described as an early morning US attack near Bandar Abbas airport, Tasnim news agency reported. The IRGC said they targeted the US airbase from which the attack on the control station near Bandar Abbas was launched. Iranian state media claimed that the tanker had turned off its radar systems while trying to pass through the strait and was stopped after Iran’s navy fired at it.
Iranian state media also reported that the US strikes caused no casualties or property damage.
Kuwait - which hosts a large US base - said it was responding to missile and drone attacks without saying where the attacks were coming from.
US strikes Iranian boats, missile launch sites in 'self-defense,' says CENTCOM
The US launched similar “self-defense” strikes against Iran on Tuesday, targeting missile launch sites and boats attempting to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
“US forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” US Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins said.
“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” he added.
Two Iranian boats were spotted laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, reported Fox News, citing a senior US official. Forces also responded after a missile site had targeted US warplanes, said the official.
The US military eliminated both IRGC vessels, he added.