U.S. and Iranian forces have exchanged heavy missile and drone assaults, with Tehran targeting U.S. facilities in states across the Gulf on Sunday and saying it had again closed the vital Strait of Hormuz.
The strikes were the latest in a cycle of attacks and counter-attacks as Iran seeks to assert control over shipping through the strait. However, the barrage marked an escalation in pace and range.
The strikes extended to Qatar, a mediator in ceasefire talks that had not come under attack since April, while the United Arab Emirates, which had not been targeted since early May, said its air defenses had engaged missiles and drones from Iran.
The U.S. military began launching more strikes against Iran at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday, U.S. Central Command said in a statement on the social media platform X, “to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”
In a brief phone interview with Reuters on Sunday afternoon, Trump referred to this weekend’s U.S. strikes on Iran. “We’re beating them up,” he said.
Iranian media on Sunday said there had been missile attacks and explosions around the port of Bandar Abbas, home to military facilities on the strait, and nearby Qeshm Island.
More on Nikkei Asia
