The US struck Iran’s coastal defences and missile sites on Wednesday after reimposing a naval blockade of its ports, while Iran threatened to shut off more regional energy exports, saying it was engaged in an “existential war” with America.
The daytime strikes mark the latest escalation of attacks and counterattacks launched by the two sides as they vie for control of the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about a fifth of global oil and gas shipments before the war.
“At 6am ET (1100 GMT) today, US Central Command forces began launching a wave of strikes against Iran,” the US military said.
“The strikes are designed to further degrade military capabilities Iranian forces have used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
“In a statement issued hours after Iran’s Mehr news agency reported that US projectiles had hit a location on Iran’s Hengam Island in the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran’s top negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Iranian security depended on maintaining what he called “Iranian arrangements” in the strait.
