US Concludes Fifth Attack Wave on Iran Amidst Regional Tensions

U.S. forces concluded their fifth assault on Iranian targets early Thursday, following renewed hostilities over the weekend. The strikes aimed to degrade Iran's capacity to threaten commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Simultaneously, Iran reportedly dispatched drones toward Kuwait and Bahrain.

The American forces targeted Iranian command centers, air defense capabilities, and coastal surveillance facilities. The latest offensive, which ended around 3 a.m. local time, involved precision-guided munitions against multiple sites, including coastal defense installations and missile launch sites on the Tunb Islands. U.S. Central Command (Centcom) released video footage of the strikes.

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American forces attacked Iranian command centers, air defense, and missile and drone capabilities, as well as coastal surveillance facilities, to further reduce Iran’s ability to threaten innocent mariners on commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian state media reported that air defense systems were activated in Tehran, with explosions heard in the capital. Concurrently, reports emerged from Kuwait and Bahrain of Iranian drone activity. Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for targeting a radar warning system and a U.S. soldier assembly point at Ali al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait, as well as U.S. communication systems and fuel depots at Azraq base in Jordan. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi condemned what he described as a drone incursion into Iraqi airspace over Arbil.

Earlier, the U.S. confirmed it had struck a Greek-owned oil tanker, the Belma, in international waters. Centcom stated the vessel ignored warnings while attempting to breach a U.S. blockade near Iran's Kharg Island and was disabled by Hellfire missiles. The U.S. reimposed a blockade on vessels traveling to and from Iranian ports and coastal areas on Tuesday.

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The merchant ship ignored multiple warnings as it attempted to break the U.S. blockade. A U.S. aircraft disabled the vessel by firing Hellfire missiles at the ship's exhaust pipe. The ship is no longer heading towards Iran.