US begins strikes on IRGC targets in Iran after attacks on shipping, troops
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The US military has begun strikes on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran following attempted attacks by the Iranian force on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and US service members in West Asia.
The US Central Command said in a post on X that US forces began striking IRGC targets at 12 pm ET on Tuesday, September 1, or 9:30 pm IST.
“Today at 12 p.m. ET, U.S. forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran,” CENTCOM said, adding that the strikes followed recent attempted attacks against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and American service members deployed in the region.
Iranian state media reported that four projectiles had struck cities east of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait has remained closed after six months of war, while the US continues its counter-naval blockade of Iranian ports.
The latest strikes follow a US attack on an Iranian island on Sunday, when American forces targeted rocket launchers on Larak island. The US said the operation was intended to prevent Iran from planting further mines in the shipping lane.
Iran responded by launching missiles at US bases in Jordan, which were intercepted, while the United Arab Emirates said it had stopped an Iranian drone over its waters.
US President Donald Trump on Monday said US and Israeli bombardment had left Iran a “failed nation”, claiming its leadership was dead, its military devastated and its economy in ruins. He also indicated that further strikes remained possible.
“That doesn’t mean we won’t smack them,” Trump told reporters. “We’ll see what happens.”
The renewed fighting comes after Trump appeared to shift towards an economic strategy against Iran last month, promising an “economic D-Day” through sanctions.
The escalation also comes as US stocks of advanced weapons have been declining, while the war has remained unpopular among Americans and could create political risks for Republicans ahead of the November midterm elections.