US strikes more than 80 targets in Iran following IRGC attacks on shipping in Strait of Hormuz

According to a statement from the US command, among the targets hit were air defense systems, command and control posts, coastal radar stations, anti-ship missile launchers, as well as more than 60 small boats of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

US sources told Reuters and AP that the US attacked Iranian air defense systems, coastal surveillance systems, surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship cruise missiles, drone launch sites and port facilities.

At the moment it is unclear whether there will be a sequel. Some sources talk about the completion of the operation, which lasted several hours. However, another source told CNN: “This is punishment and it won’t end soon.”

Iranian media reported that several people were wounded in the strikes on a commercial pier in the southern city of Sirik. Attacks were also reported in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island and the village of Ziyarat. Among the objects hit, according to Iranian authorities, were “a fishing pier, civilian vessels and a communications tower.” “Several fishing boats” caught fire in Bandar Abbas.

Iranian television reported explosions on the island of Qeshm, as well as several explosions on the island of Kharg in the Persian Gulf. Iranian TV later stated that the situation in Bandar Abbas and Qeshm had “returned to normal,” but explosions continued to occur in Sirik.

US President Donald Trump approved the plan to strike Iran and ordered its implementation while at the NATO summit in Turkey, Axios reports, citing an American official. According to Axios, these strikes were the largest in the last 10 days.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who was in Iraq due to the ongoing funeral of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, cut short his visit and returned to Iran.

Tehran accused the US of “violating the memorandum of understanding.”

Khatam al-Anbiya, Iran’s emergency command, accused the United States of “overt aggression” and threatened a “crushing response.” Tehran said it would not allow the United States to interfere in the management of the Strait of Hormuz and stressed that the “only safe route” for merchant ships and oil tankers would be determined by Iran.

Early on the morning of July 8, alarms were heard in Bahrain. Apparently, the Iranian IRGC attempted to attack targets in Bahrain in response to American strikes on targets in Iran.

The command of the Kuwaiti army notified of a missile and drone attack from Iran. Air defense forces repulse the attack. There have been no reports of damage yet.

Iranian media claim that the IRGC shot down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone over Bandar Abbas. The US does not confirm this.

The speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Baker Ghalibaf, commenting on the American strikes, the return of sanctions against Iran’s oil sector and the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, wrote on the X network: “The era of intimidation and blackmail is over. This will lead to nothing. We will not retreat.” Ghalibaf also mentioned the “continuing Zionist aggression in Lebanon.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said that “85 US military installations” were attacked in response to “American aggression” in Bahrain and Kuwait. What kind of objects these are and what damage was caused to them is not stated in the IRGC statement.

The Iranian news agency Mehr reports that on the morning of July 8, several explosions were heard in Bushehr and the surrounding area.

There are also reports of new sirens and explosions in Bahrain.