US launches strikes on Iranian targets after Hormuz drone attack
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- The operation targeted missile, drone, and coastal radar sites.
- The action followed a June 25 drone strike on the M/V Ever Lovely.
- CENTCOM called the attack a ceasefire violation and a threat to maritime navigation.
US Central Command forces executed a series of military strikes against targets inside Iran on Friday.
The high-profile aerial campaign serves as a direct, powerful retaliation for an unprovoked drone assault launched by Iranian forces against a commercial shipping vessel transiting the strategic Strait of Hormuz a day prior.
American combat aircraft focused their firepower on disabling critical military infrastructure, successfully striking multiple Iranian missile and drone storage facilities, as well as several coastal radar stations along the strategic corridor.
Targeting M/V Ever Lovely
The Pentagon's decision to launch retaliatory strikes follows a maritime crisis on June 25, when an Iranian one-way attack drone directly struck the commercial cargo ship M/V Ever Lovely.
The vessel, a large Singapore-flagged cargo container, was targeted while exiting the Strait of Hormuz along the Omani coast.
While the vessel sustained damage from the exploding munition, maritime logs indicate it was able to maintain propulsion and continue along its path.
CENTCOM officials immediately classified the drone strike as an unwarranted act of aggression against neutral international commerce.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 26, 2026
Ceasefire violation
Defense officials emphasized that the Iranian military's actions represent a flagrant breach of international maritime norms and standing diplomatic arrangements between Washington and Tehran.
"The unwarranted aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces clearly violated the ceasefire," CENTCOM stated in an official release. Military leadership added that Tehran's dangerous behavior directly undermined the core principles of global freedom of navigation at a time when international commerce is heavily dependent on the vital trade lane.
In the wake of the kinetic exchange, CENTCOM confirmed that American naval and air forces have intensified their presence in the region.
US assets are currently providing direct safe-passage coordination and security support to civilian cargo carriers moving through the strait.
The Pentagon warned that its forces will remain highly vigilant and heavily deployed to ensure that every aspect of the ceasefire agreement with Iran is strictly obeyed and kept in full effect.
