US retaliates against Iran after second ship attack

The US launched a new attack on Iran following a drone attack on a Panamanian-flagged ship off the coast of Hormuz on Saturday.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had struck several targets across Iran in direct response to “continued attacks” on commercial vessels, including military equipment, communications systems, air defense sites and drone storage facilities.

“Iran was given the opportunity to comply with the ceasefire agreement but chose not to when its forces launched a one-way attack by drones striking MT Kiku,” the Panamanian-flagged ship said in a statement.

Commercial ships continue to operate in the Gulf of Hormuz, Centcom said. Iran has not yet commented on the current attack.

The latest strikes come less than a day after the US retaliated against Iran, which the US said was in response to a June 25 drone attack on the Singapore-flagged cargo ship MV Ever Lovely.

Centcom described the U.S. attack as a “strong response” to the attack on the cargo ship, adding that the “unnecessary attack on merchant vessels by Iranian forces is a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement.”

Tehran says the cargo ship was attacked as it attempted to transit the Gulf waterway illegally, and that the retaliatory attack qualifies as a violation of the US ceasefire.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement early Saturday that it had carried out additional attacks on targets linked to US forces, blaming the “deal-breaking US government” for the incident.

The U.S. and Iran agreed on June 17 to end hostilities under a 14-point memorandum of understanding, which called on Iran to “make best efforts to allow free passage of commercial vessels for 60 days.”

The Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for oil and gas cargo, has been effectively closed by Tehran since the US and Israel attacked Iran in late February.

The closure of the critical channel has led to a spike in global oil prices and prevented the export of other essential commodities such as fertiliser.