US, Iran Trade Strikes for the First Time in Weeks

Tehran (GNP): The United States and Iran exchanged military strikes for the first time in weeks after American forces targeted two rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first known US action against Iran since late July.

The strike killed two people and injured two others, according to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which vowed a forceful response to the attack. US Central Command described the operation as a limited and precise action against minelaying forces it said posed an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran responded by striking US military bases in Jordan, with the Jordanian army confirming it intercepted eight missiles early Monday morning. Iranian state television separately reported that the Iranian army targeted an air base in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with drones. The IRGC said the missile strikes on the King Hussein and al-Azraq bases in Jordan were carried out in direct response to the Larak Island attack.

Larak Island sits close to the major port of Bandar Abbas along the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that once carried roughly 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the conflict began. Iran has been requiring tanker traffic to pass by the island for inspection and reportedly charging vessels $2 million to cross.

Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the strike on Larak Island as military aggression and described its response in Jordan as an act of legitimate defence. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran was not seeking war but would respond decisively to any aggression against the country.

Following the exchange, US President Donald Trump shared AI-generated videos on social media depicting oil infrastructure explosions, including footage referencing Kharg Island, a major Iranian oil terminal Trump has previously threatened to seize.

Trump also said last week that mines placed by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz had been detonated or removed, and warned that any vessel deploying new mines would be destroyed. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi rejected the claim as propaganda.

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The strikes come as Iran faces renewed economic pressure following a fresh US sanctions campaign announced on 24 August, aimed at further isolating Tehran and expanding secondary sanctions against its allies. Iranian officials have dismissed the sanctions as a continuation of existing economic measures rather than a new escalation.

The US is also maintaining a naval blockade affecting Iran’s oil exports, having disabled three vessels, boarded two and redirected 82 others in recent operations. The broader conflict began on 28 February when the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran, prompting Iranian retaliation against Israel, US bases and Gulf allies, and has now passed the six-month mark.

Pezeshkian said, “We are not seeking war, but we will deliver a decisive response to the aggressors.”