THE US has blitzed Iran with fresh strikes overnight after shooting down “multiple” drones launched by the regime and bombing a missile site.
It comes just days after Donald Trump bombed the country he supposedly agreed a ceasefire with and as the two sides negotiate a peace deal.
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The US has launched fresh strikes on an Iranian military site Credit: Reuters
Donald Trump has said Iran wants to make a deal, but reiterated the US will ‘finish the job’ if they can’t come to an agreement Credit: Splash
An American official said its strikes were defensive after Iran attempted drone attacks which threatened US forces and commercial traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran fired four one-way drones at a US commercial vessel, with the military attacking another drone launching unit on the ground, a senior official told Axios.
Four explosions were then reported east of the city of Bandar Abbas just after 1.30am local time, with Iranian state TV confirming that air defences were active.
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.
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An official said: “These actions were measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire.”
Bandar Abbas is Iran‘s most important port in the Persian Gulf.
The coast city was the target of multiple strikes late on Monday that hit a missile launch site and two Iranian mine-laying boats.
In a statement, Centcom spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins confirmed that the US conducted the hits in “self-defence”.
“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” he added.
But this week’s attacks suggest that tensions are reaching boiling point again as the warring countries remain without a peace deal.
Trump has said he thought current talks were going “very well” and added that Iran was “very much intent” on making a deal at a White House cabinet meeting last night.
The US president added that the regime’s tiring tyrants are “negotiating on fumes” and that “their economy is in freefall” as $24billion (£17.8b) of its assets are frozen in foreign banks.
Trump said: “I think they’re starting to give us the things that they have to give us.
“And if they do, that’s great, and if they won’t, then the man on my left will have to finish them off,” he said, gesturing to War Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Trump also declared that the Strait of Hormuz is “going to be open for everybody” and that US forces will watch over it to make sure that it is kept out of Tehran’s grip.
Asked about a potential pact Iran-Oman pact to jointly control the vital shipping lane, Trump said: “Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that. They’ll be fine.”
The regime has insisted that it cannot begin meaningful talks without its frozen funds.
And the major sticking point in talks remains the US’ insistence that the mullahs must relinquish their stockpile of highly-enriched nuclear uranium.
When asked about the prospect of letting China or Russia take over the supply, Trump said: “That would not make me comfortable.”
The US president also insisted that upcoming midterm elections would have no effect on his negotiating position, with Iran hoping the war’s economic impact may weaken the White House‘s position.
He said: “They thought they’re going to out wait me. I don’t care about the midterms.”
