The confrontation between the United States and Iran has entered a dangerous new phase after Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz and Washington responded with another wave of airstrikes. With missiles flying across the Gulf and vital shipping routes disrupted, fears are growing that the conflict could spiral into a wider regional war.
The United States has launched a fresh wave of military strikes against Iran after Tehran attacked a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, dramatically escalating tensions across the Middle East.
Hours later, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced it had closed the strategic waterway until further notice, warning that any further US military action would be met with what it described as a “severe” response.
The latest exchange marks another sharp escalation in a conflict that has already seen attacks on commercial shipping, missile strikes across the Gulf and growing fears of a wider regional war.
According to US Central Command (Centcom), the latest operation was launched after the IRGC targeted the MV GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged commercial ship sailing through the Strait of Hormuz.
The US military said the vessel suffered extensive damage to its engine room and was unable to continue its journey. One civilian crew member remains missing.
The UK’s Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said military authorities informed them that the crew had been forced to abandon the ship and escape in lifeboats.
In response, the US said it struck 140 Iranian military targets, including missile launch sites, drone facilities, communications infrastructure and coastal surveillance positions.
“Iran was provided yet another opportunity to demonstrate adherence to the Memorandum of Understanding after being held accountable for earlier attacks on commercial vessels but has again failed,” Centcom said in a statement.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth backed the operation, posting on X:
“Iran made a poor choice. Now they pay.”
Iran confirmed that several military positions along its southern coastline had been hit, including coastal bases and telecommunications towers.
Within hours, Tehran launched retaliatory strikes.
The IRGC said it attacked Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan, claiming it destroyed the facility’s command centre and hangars used for MQ-9 surveillance drones.
At the same time, authorities in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates activated air defence systems as missiles and drones crossed the region.
Earlier on Sunday, Iranian state media announced that the Strait of Hormuz had been closed after Iranian forces fired what they described as warning shots at a commercial vessel travelling along what Tehran called an “unapproved route.”
According to the IRGC, the ship ignored repeated instructions before being stopped.
The Guards warned that any US attempt to challenge the closure would trigger further attacks, adding that American military bases across the region could become targets.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, also struck a defiant tone.
“The era of one-sided deals is OVER,” he wrote on X.
“We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.”
The latest violence follows attacks earlier this week on three commercial oil tankers passing through waters recommended by the United States.
SEE ALSO: Iran Shuts Down Strait of Hormuz “Until Further Notice” After Striking Commercial Vessel
Those incidents triggered American airstrikes that Iranian officials say killed 17 people and injured 115 others, prompting Tehran to retaliate against US allies in the Gulf.
The exchange effectively shattered the fragile ceasefire reached under a memorandum of understanding signed in June.
President Donald Trump has since declared that the ceasefire is over, although he has also indicated that negotiations could still continue.
US officials say they have demanded that Iran publicly confirm the Strait of Hormuz remains open to international shipping and formally pledge to stop attacking commercial vessels.
According to American media reports, Iranian officials privately admitted the earlier tanker attacks were a mistake, blaming a rogue hardline faction inside the country.
Meanwhile, tensions have been further inflamed by statements from Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.
In his first public message since succeeding his father, Ali Khamenei, who was killed during the opening hours of the US-Israeli campaign in February, he vowed that revenge was inevitable.
“We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs of these two wars from the criminal and disgraced killers,” he said in a statement broadcast on Iranian state television.
“The matter depends neither on my personal existence nor on that of other officials. Whether we are present or not, it will come to pass.”
The threat comes as crowds attending funeral ceremonies in recent days carried placards calling for the assassination of President Trump.
Responding on Saturday, Trump warned that any attempt on his life would bring overwhelming retaliation.
“The United States will completely decimate and destroy all areas of Iran,” he said.
With the Strait of Hormuz now closed, commercial shipping disrupted and both sides continuing military operations, diplomats face mounting pressure to prevent the crisis from expanding into a conflict that could destabilise the entire Gulf region and disrupt global energy supplies.
