Iranian authorities reported on Monday a new wave of U.S. bombings against Qeshm Island, located in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, marking the third such incident in seven days, according to the agency EFE.
Iranian media, including the state agency IRNA, reported four explosions during the night from Sunday to Monday at various locations on the island. The deputy governor of Hormozgan province, Ahmad Nafisi, confirmed the attacks and specified that none of the targeted sites were located in residential, commercial, or service areas.
No damage has been caused to the vital infrastructures or services of the island, declared Nafisi, who added that emergency agencies remain on high alert and that the situation is under control.
Detonations were also reported in the coastal cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik, although Iranian media attributed them to the country’s own operations to maintain control over the strait.
Washington did not issue any official statement regarding the attacks this morning.
This third round of bombings adds to the two previous attacks recorded in recent days against Qeshm.
The first incident occurred last Monday, when U.S. forces destroyed a surface-to-air missile system belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard after it fired at a U.S. aircraft, according to three officials cited by CBS News.
The second incident occurred on Friday, with two missiles striking the Suza area, to the south of the island, according to the semi-official Iranian agency Tasnim.
The November attacks are the first against Iranian territory since September 1, when hostilities were resumed following a peace agreement signed in June in Switzerland, which had temporarily halted the conflict that began in February with the so-called "Operation Epic Fury."
Despite the escalation on the ground, Donald Trump assured on Sunday that he is "not looking to escalate" the conflict with Iran, arguing in part that voters "did not like the war."
The statement came days after the Republican defeat in the legislative elections on November third, in which the Democrats regained control of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abás Araqchí interpreted that defeat as a paralyzing factor in Washington's strategy: "For the past few days, precisely due to those electoral results, there have been no visits from the mediators, and some time is needed for conditions to be favorable for resuming talks," he stated in an interview with Iranian state television.
In that context, the White House announced on Sunday a meeting for this Monday between Trump and the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar, Mohamed bin Abdulrahmán Al Thani, one of the main mediators between Washington and Tehran in the pursuit of a diplomatic solution to the conflict.
Meanwhile, Iran reported on Monday that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recently conducted an inspection at the Bushehr nuclear plant in the south of the country.
The spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmail Bagaei, confirmed the visit and reaffirmed Tehran's commitment to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, amid internal pressures from conservative sectors demanding the abandonment of the agreement and a review of the country's nuclear doctrine.
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