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The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced this Wednesday the beginning of a new wave of bombings against Iran, ordered directly by President Donald Trump as Commander in Chief, in response to Iranian attacks on merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a statement posted on its official X account, CENTCOM declared: "By order of the Commander-in-Chief, the United States Central Command forces have begun to carry out additional strikes against Iran to further degrade its ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States holds Iran responsible for the recent unjustified aggression against commercial vessels and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international maritime route."
The immediate trigger was an attack carried out on Tuesday by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which fired missiles at least three merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Among the ships affected are the Al Rekayyat, a liquefied natural gas tanker from Qatar that was struck on its port side and suffered a fire, and the Saudi oil tanker Wedyan.
Although Tehran did not officially claim responsibility for the action, a U.S. official and the Qatari government itself directly attributed it to Iran.
Trump reacted strongly: "This is in retaliation for the bombing of ships that Iran carried out yesterday. If it happens again, it will be much worse," he wrote on his X account.
The president officially declared the end of the truce with NATO on Wednesday, labeled Iran as "liars," and revoked the exemption that allowed for the sale of Iranian oil.
The bombings on Wednesday targeted over 80 military objectives in southern Iran, including the islands of Jark and Jarg, air defense systems, coastal radars,anti-ship missiles, and more than 60 small vessels of the IRGC.
Iranian state television confirmed at least eight military personnel killed —described by Tehran as “brave members of the air and naval forces”— and termed the attacks as “criminal aggression” and a “clear violation” of the ceasefire agreement signed on June 17 in Switzerland.
In retaliation, the IRGC attacked 85 American military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain on the same Wednesday.
This new outbreak of violence breaks the fragile truce reached in June, known as the "Islamabad Memorandum," which included a cessation of hostilities, the reopening of the Strait, and a fund of 300 billion dollars for the reconstruction of Iran.
The truce had already shown signs of collapse on June 26, when Iran launched four drones against ships in Hormuz, and one struck a commercial freighter, prompting bombings from CENTCOM that same day.
The conflict began on February 28, 2026, with the "Epic Fury Operation," coordinated attacks by the U.S. and Israel against Iranian nuclear facilities. In retaliation, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz in March, collapsing 97% of naval traffic and causing the price of Brent crude to spike from $67 to over $126 per barrel.
After the bombings on Wednesday, the Iranian Army announced the total closure of the Strait of Hormuz to all types of vessels, warning that they will open fire on any ship that attempts to cross it — a route through which approximately 20% of the world's oil supply passes.
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