Amid an ongoing ceasefire with Iran, the United States Central Command, commonly known as CENTCOM, confirmed that American forces carried out what it described as “self-defence strikes” in southern Iran on Monday. The military operation reportedly targeted Iranian missile launch facilities and naval vessels near the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important global oil shipping routes.
According to CENTCOM spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins, the strikes were launched to protect American troops from what the US described as direct threats posed by Iranian military forces. In an official statement provided to Fox News, Hawkins said US forces acted defensively and emphasised that the operation was intended to ensure the safety of American personnel stationed in the region.
“US forces conducted self-defence strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Hawkins stated.
He further explained that the targets included missile launch positions and Iranian boats allegedly attempting to deploy naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway holds enormous geopolitical significance because a large portion of the world’s oil and energy shipments pass through it daily. Any disruption in the strait can immediately impact global energy markets and international maritime security.
Hawkins stressed that despite the military response, the United States was still exercising restraint during the ceasefire period.
“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” he added.
A senior US official later provided additional details regarding the operation. According to the official, two boats linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, were detected allegedly laying naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. The reported activity prompted an immediate military response from US forces operating in the region.
The same official also stated that American forces struck a surface-to-air missile site located in Bandar Abbas after the missile system allegedly targeted US military aircraft conducting operations nearby. Bandar Abbas is one of Iran’s most important southern port cities and serves as a major naval and military hub overlooking the Strait of Hormuz.
According to US officials, both the IRGC boats and the missile site were destroyed during what Washington repeatedly characterised as “defensive strikes.”
Two additional sources speaking to Fox News reportedly clarified that the limited military action should not be interpreted as the collapse of the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran. The sources insisted that the operation was intentionally narrow in scope and designed only to neutralise immediate threats against American personnel and assets.
The situation nevertheless heightened tensions across southern Iran, where multiple explosions were reported throughout Monday. Iranian media outlets reported blasts in Bandar Abbas, while residents also reportedly heard explosions near the coastal areas of Sirik and Jask, both located along Iran’s southern coastline facing the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz.
Later in the day, the senior US official indicated that the military operation had concluded, at least temporarily, saying the strikes were “over for now.”
The military developments unfolded alongside renewed political pressure from US President Donald Trump regarding Iran’s nuclear programme. Trump once again called on Iran to surrender its stockpile of enriched uranium to the United States for destruction, while also promoting a broader regional peace initiative tied to the expansion of the Abraham Accords.
Trump suggested that even Iran itself could eventually become part of a future regional diplomatic framework connected to the Abraham Accords, which were originally brokered during his first presidential term to normalise relations between Israel and several Arab countries.
Posting on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump described Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile as “nuclear dust” and insisted that it should either be handed over to the United States or destroyed under internationally supervised conditions.
“The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location,” Trump wrote.
The combination of military action, ceasefire tensions, nuclear negotiations, and diplomatic pressure surrounding the Abraham Accords reflects the increasingly fragile and complex geopolitical environment in the Middle East. While US officials maintain that the latest strikes were strictly defensive and limited, the incidents underscore how rapidly tensions in and around the Strait of Hormuz can escalate into wider regional confrontations involving military, diplomatic, and economic consequences.
