WASHINGTON — Iran and the United States traded attacks on Friday in the most significant escalation since the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending their conflict, U.S. and Iranian officials said.
U.S. Central Command said U.S. aircraft struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites in response to what it described as an Iranian drone attack on a commercial vessel in the Strait of Hormuz a day earlier.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it hit targets linked to U.S. forces in the Gulf region in retaliation for the U.S. strikes on its southern coast, according to a statement reported by Iranian state media.
U.S. officials said the Iranian action against the Singapore-flagged cargo ship violated the ceasefire agreement reached earlier this month. President Donald Trump blamed Iran for the incident and stated the U.S. response was necessary to protect commercial shipping.
No immediate details were available on casualties or the extent of damage from either side’s strikes. Authorities in both countries have not released confirmed figures. Emergency response efforts were underway in affected areas, officials said.
The exchange comes days after the U.S. and Iran signed the memorandum on June 17 to pause hostilities, reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic and begin further negotiations. Assessments of the latest incidents were continuing, and further updates were expected from both governments as information becomes available.
