US launches strikes on Iran following ‘attempted attacks in Strait’ – BBC News
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US strikes Iran as state media reports four killed at wedding party
Image source: Reuters
Image caption: Vessels were visible across the Strait of Hormuz from Oman this week
By Joe Coughlan
Published 1 September 2026, 18:35 BST
Updated Just now
American forces resumed strikes against Iran on Tuesday, US Central Command has said in a statement.
The Iranian Red Crescent reported that four people, including a young child, were killed and more than 50 injured when shrapnel from a US missile attack hit a home where a wedding celebration was taking place in Sirik in southern Iran.
Centcom stated the strikes followed "recent attempted attacks" by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and "American service members deployed to the region."
The IRGC responded by stating that the US would regret the strikes, and Iranian news agencies reported that retaliatory missile and drone attacks on US targets had begun.
President Donald Trump warned that Iran would be hit again at "a much harder and higher level" if it retaliated.
This attack comes after the first known US strikes on Iran since late July earlier this week, when forces attacked two rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait. Tehran retaliated by firing missiles at air bases in Jordan and a drone at the UAE.
Centcom stated that US forces began striking IRGC targets at 12:00 ET (16:00 GMT). In addition to the Sirik attack, other reports indicated projectiles hit the areas of Chabahar and Konarak and an airport in Jiroft, with explosions heard on Qeshm island and Bandar Abbas.
The IRGC reported launching a barrage of ballistic missiles at a US Marine base in Jordan’s Aqaba in response to the Sirik attack. Jordan’s state-affiliated Al-Mamlaka network reported that the country’s national security center warned residents of the Aqaba and Mafraq governates of falling debris, adding that the warning had since ended.
Trump described Tuesday’s "large and powerful" strikes as a response to Iran targeting a US military base in Jordan, noting the country had "failed" at adding sea mines to the Strait. He also threatened that a "much larger-scale attack is waiting in the wings."
The US and Israel launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on 28 February, with Iran responding by attacking Israel, US bases, and allied states in the Gulf. This effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz to marine traffic. A US-Iran agreement, known as the Memorandum of Understanding, to extend a ceasefire between the two countries was signed in June. However, that agreement has expired, leading to a resumption of hostilities. Both the US and Iran have also fired on shipping, with Tehran targeting vessels it claims have sought to cross the Strait without its permission, and the US enforcing a naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Washington announced a fresh sanctions campaign on 24 August aimed at further isolating Tehran and expanding secondary sanctions against its allies.
Iranian officials and state media have largely dismissed the campaign as a continuation of previous US economic measures, arguing that Washington’s military failure in the recent conflict justifies their position.
However, on Tuesday Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was quoted by state media as saying that if the US returned to committing to the agreement, Iran would reciprocate.
