The US military carried out strikes on Iranian targets after President Donald Trump accused Iran of โstupidly violatingโ the truce following an attack on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Central Command said it struck missile and drone storage facilities and coastal radar positions on Friday in response to a drone attack on a cargo ship on Thursday that halted the planned evacuation of sailors stranded in the region.
Tehran said the cargo ship was attacked because it was using an unauthorized transit route through the Persian Gulf waterway.
Following the US strikes, Iran in turn accused the US of violating the interim agreement and said it had struck targets associated with US forces.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) called the US strikes a โpowerful responseโ to the drone attack a day earlier.
โThe unjustified aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces has clearly violated the ceasefire,โ the statement said.
โAdditionally, Iranโs dangerous behavior has undermined freedom of navigation as trade increasingly passes through the vital international trade corridor.โ
Centcom said the US military โwill continue to provide coordination of safe passage and support for commercial vessels transiting the strait.โ
Iranโs Foreign Ministry issued a statement Saturday morning saying the country had retaliated by striking targets associated with US forces and blaming the situation on the โtreaty-violating US regime.โ
Iranโs Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its navy had struck US military positions in the region, without providing further details. The BBC has approached the Pentagon for comment.
Bahrainโs Foreign Ministry said the country was attacked by โseveral Iranian dronesโ early on Saturday, condemning the attack as a โblatant violationโ of its sovereignty and accusing Tehran of undermining peace efforts.
Also on Saturday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Office (UKMTO) said the tanker was hit by an unidentified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz.
The vessel sustained damage to its bridge, but all crew were safe and there were no reports of environmental damage, UKMTO added.