US launches new strikes on Iran
The US military has launched a new round of strikes on Iran over what it said were attempted attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and US troops in the region, escalating hostilities following a month-long lull.
The development follows an exchange of strikes over the weekend, after US forces hit Iran’s Larak Island in the Strait and Tehran retaliated with ballistic missiles and drones targeting American military positions in Jordan. US President Donald Trump vowed to “hit Iran hard.”
US Central Command said in a post on X on Tuesday that American forces had begun striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets at 12 p.m. Eastern Time (16:00 GMT), adding that the operation followed “recent attempted attacks” by the IRGC on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and on US troops deployed in the region.
Today at 12 p.m. ET, U.S. forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran. The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 1, 2026
Trump wrote on Truth Social that the US was striking Iranian targets “near the Strait of Hormuz,” describing the operation as “large and powerful” and calling it retaliation for what he said was an attempted Iranian mining of the waterway and a missile attack on a US base in Jordan. He warned that if Tehran retaliates again, it would be “hit again at a much harder and higher level.”
Iranian media have reported explosions in the southeastern cities of Konarak and Chabahar following the US strikes. According to IRNA, a provincial security official said a total of four projectiles hit the two counties.
Iran has vowed to retaliate for the US strikes with “crushing and devastating blows,” according to statements from Iran’s armed forces published by Tasnim. Tehran will “under no circumstances compromise” on the country’s rights and will impose “heavy costs” on the US, the statements said.
In a post on X, an IRGC spokesman also warned that “severe punishment awaits the aggressors” and that “America will regret its new attacks.”
Earlier, Washington launched what it called an “economic onslaught” against Iran, imposing new sanctions and threatening to boot any country dealing financially with Tehran out of the US dollar system. On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said new secondary sanctions would be rolled out every week against foreign banks and companies that continue dealing with Iran.
