Donald Trump on US Iran strikes
The warning came after the US military said it had begun striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran at 1600 GMT on Tuesday. US President Donald Trump warned Iran of a much stronger American response if Tehran retaliates after the US military launched strikes on Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US was “as we speak, striking Iranian Targets near the Strait of Hormuz”, describing the strikes as “large and powerful”. Trump said the action was in retaliation for what he described as Iran’s “failed attempt” to add sea mines to the Strait of Hormuz and the launch of eight missiles at a US military base in Jordan, which he said were all intercepted. US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the strikes followed “recent attempted attacks” by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and American service members deployed in the region. CENTCOM described the action as “limited, precise” and said the launchers were being prepared to “launch rockets and deploy sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz”. Iran’s IRGC said the attack killed two people and injured two others, and vowed “response and punishment”. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said: “We are not seeking war, but we will deliver a decisive response to the aggressors.”
The latest strikes follow a US attack on Monday against two rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz.