The U.S. military Tuesday evening reimposed a blockade on Iranian ports and carried out strikes that killed at least seven troops, U.S. Central Command and Iranian state television said.
Iranian state television said the dead were assigned to the 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade and were at a barracks in Bampour in Sistan and Baluchestan province, adding that Americans fired at least 13 missiles and that the dead included conscripts and career soldiers.
U.S. Central Command said its forces struck dozens of Iranian targets, including missile and drone sites and coastal defense systems. Adm. Brad Cooper said Iran had launched dozens of missiles and drones at neighboring Gulf Arab countries and added, "U.S. forces are holding Iran accountable for unwarranted aggression that continues to endanger innocent lives."
Central Command said there are at least 19 U.S. warships in the Arabian Sea, including two aircraft carriers and an amphibious assault ship with more than 1,000 Marines aboard, and that there are "hundreds of military aircraft operating across the Middle East."
Iran’s Health Ministry spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said more than 260 people were wounded in the latest round of overnight strikes and that "more than 30 people have been killed over recent days." Hossein Kermanpour, another ministry spokesperson, said the latest overnight U.S. airstrikes injured more than 260 people but did not provide fatality statistics.
Missile alert warnings went out in Bahrain and Kuwait early as they faced incoming Iranian fire; Jordan said it shot down three incoming Iranian missiles, and Kuwait said an Iranian attack wounded four members of its navy and set a building on fire. Kuwait also said it had shot down dozens of drones and missiles, reported an Iranian strike on a Kuwaiti warship and said its forces were confronting "hostile drone attacks," and Bahrain said its alert sirens were sounding. Iran's state-run broadcaster reported that the country's army had carried out separate attacks on U.S. targets in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain, and U.S. allies said they intercepted drones and missiles launched from Iran.
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard warned that the Strait of Hormuz would remain shut until the U.S. ended its "acts of aggression" and told the United States it should "expect the closure of other oil and gas export routes that serve the interests of the United States and its allies." The Guard also declared that "The export of oil and gas from the region will be either for everyone or for no one."
When President Donald Trump announced the return of the blockade Monday he also said he would impose a 20% fee on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz but dropped the plan hours before resuming the blockade, citing requests from allies. Trump said he was called by the region's "kings and emirs" who "We’d love to do it a different way. We’d love to invest in the United States with billions and billions of dollars," and added, "You better make a deal, or you’re not going to have anything left." He also told an interviewer, "I'll save the energy targets for last, but ultimately we'll hit energy targets."
Central Command said it began launching a wave of strikes at 6 a.m. ET and completed a seven-hour barrage Tuesday evening, and that it has struck Iran for four consecutive nights. Centcom officials said Wednesday morning the U.S. used drone, air and navy strikes in the newest operations and that a 90-minute wave was used to target Iran's coastal defenses and cruise missile storage and launch sites on Greater Tunb Island.
The renewed blockade stops vessels from transiting to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas. The blockade had previously been lifted as part of an interim deal known as the Islamabad Memorandum that set a 60-day period for negotiations; President Trump signed that memorandum on June 14.
International energy markets reacted: Brent crude briefly topped $87 early Tuesday and dipped to $78 in the aftermath of Trump’s announcement that he had changed course. Brent was trading early Wednesday at $85.50 a barrel and U.S. benchmark Texas Intermediate was selling for just under $80, after Brent shot up to $86 a barrel on Tuesday, a one-month high. Both benchmarks remained significantly higher than pre-war levels but below the peak of almost $120 per barrel that Brent hit at the height of the conflict.
Analysts warned the fighting could be prolonged. Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer at international shipping body BIMCO, said the situation is "not easy" for the industry and that shifting messages add to confusion and risk. Mike Rosenberg, a management professor at IESE Business School, said the Islamabad Memorandum signed June 14 was unrealistic and said he could not see a quick positive outcome. Andreas Böhm, a lecturer in international affairs, warned the conflict risked becoming a drawn-out, years-long low-level war.