Oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz (Photo: Ho Sepahnews/AFP)
The US carried out new attacks in the south of Iran, after pres. Donald Trump had earlier threatened to “finish the job” if Tehran did not agree to a peace agreement.
Iranian media reports that three loud explosions rang out in the port city of Bandar Abbas on Thursday morning.
According to the US military’s central command center, four drones that posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz were shot down. An Iranian ground control station in Bandar Abbas, which was apparently about to launch a fifth drone, was also attacked.
The Iranian Revolutionary Guard has meanwhile targeted an American base in retaliation for the new attacks, Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB reported.
There are no details on the location of the base, although Kuwait, a US ally, has said it responds to missile and drone attacks.
“Iran is very determined, they would like to make a deal. So far they haven’t achieved it. We’re not happy with it, but we will be,” Trump said in the White House on Wednesday. “Either that, or we’ll just have to get the job done.”
A key focus of the agreement is the restoration of full traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. The US Treasury on Wednesday announced sanctions against Iran’s Persian Gulf Straits Authority, Tehran’s new agency that collects fees for travel through the Strait of Hormuz.
US and Iranian forces have maintained a ceasefire since April 8, while pressure is being exerted for a negotiated settlement, but Iran’s control over ships through the Strait of Hormuz has tightened in the past few days, after which the US launched renewed attacks on Iranian targets.
Esmaeil Baqaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, said on Monday that Tehran would continue to manage traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Marco Rubio, US Secretary of State, said on Tuesday that an agreement remains within reach, but that the Hormuz will be reopened “one way or another”.