U.S. Strikes Iran Military Site After Drone Launches

U.S. Central Command said its forces struck a military site in Bandar Abbas and shot down five Iranian one-way attack drones over the Strait of Hormuz. The command described the actions as defensive measures taken after the drones posed a threat in the area.

Corps said it targeted an American air base in the region in the early hours of Thursday morning. Kuwait's foreign affairs ministry condemned what it called criminal Iranian attacks on its territory and said it intercepted hostile missile and drone threats.

Officials said Monday's strikes targeted Iranian missile sites and boats attempting to lay mines in the Strait. The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the Iranian body that collects payments from ships passing through the waterway.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that any actors involved in imposing a tolling system would face aggressive targeting.

The renewed hostilities come during a fragile ceasefire and ongoing talks to end the three-month war that began on 28 February. Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqai condemned the U.S. strikes as a violation of the ceasefire and said Iran would take all necessary measures to defend its national sovereignty.

One-fifth of the world's liquefied natural gas and oil normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and its closure has affected global fuel trade.