The US military conducted limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island on Monday, according to three US officials, in a defensive operation aimed at protecting US assets in the region. The action was taken in response to Iran firing at a US aircraft. The strikes were characterized as defensive in nature and not part of a major combat operation.
The US attack was kept under wraps to avoid overstating the defensive move, according to a person familiar with the matter. The strikes were meant to protect US assets, and it is not clear if they are related to Iran's claims of shooting down two US reconnaissance drones over Qeshm Island. Iran's state-affiliated Fars News Agency reported "several explosions" heard on Qeshm Island in the early hours of Tuesday morning local time.
The blasts were also heard by residents of the nearby Hengam Island and those in the port city of Bandar Abbas, both situated near or in the Strait of Hormuz. Qeshm Island, located about 14 miles from Bandar Abbas, is key to Iran's attempts to assert control over traffic through the waterway critical to global energy supplies. About 20 million barrels of oil passed through the strait every day before the war.
The US has targeted the island previously in the war. The attack comes as President Donald Trump suggested that diplomacy with Tehran is still at work, writing on social media that an agreement "could happen." Iran's top diplomat said Tehran is offering to open the Strait of Hormuz within two days if an agreement is reached.
Trump did not specifically address the reports of new strikes in Iran in an appearance on Fox News Monday night. However, he said the US "might have to go after" Pickaxe Mountain, the suspected underground nuclear site where Israel believes Tehran has stored part of its enriched uranium stockpile and advanced enrichment centrifuges.
Iranian officials have issued fresh warnings in response to the US strikes. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Iranian parliamentary speaker leading negotiations with the US, said the Iranian nation will not surrender to the enemy's threats and military actions. He added that its "military and strategic response to any enemy miscalculation will be unpredictable."
Oil prices rose in early Asian trading on Tuesday after news broke of the Qeshm Island strike. Before then, oil prices had been tumbling, as the market weighed the latest developments in diplomatic talks between the US and Iran. Gasoline and diesel prices are still on track to be the most expensive of any US Election Day in history.
Key points
- The US military carried out limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in a defensive operation to protect US assets in the region.
- The strikes were in response to Iran firing at a US aircraft and were characterized as defensive in nature.
- Iranian officials have issued fresh warnings in response to the US strikes, with Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf saying the Iranian nation will not surrender to the enemy's threats and military actions.
