US carries out strikes on Iran as Donald Trump issues 'accountable' warning

The US Central Command said on the evening of Sunday, July 12 that it had begun launching attacks to try and degrade Iran’s ability to attack ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

CENTCOM wrote in a post on X: “At 5 p.m. ET today, U.S. Central Command forces began launching more strikes against Iran to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

“The Commander in Chief has directed the strikes to hold Iranian forces accountable.”

The strikes mark the latest bout of conflict since the war started on February 28, when joint US-Israeli attacks were carried out on several key Iranian sites.

Iran retaliated by closing the critical Strait of Hormuz trade route, through which 20% of all global oil traded passes.

Earlier on Sunday, the US has struck more than 100 sites in Iran following a missile attack on a vessel in the strait.

The container ship’s crew was forced to abandon it while it was ablaze, while Iran carried out strikes on targets in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

In a separate statement, CENTCOM said it hit around 140 targets, targeting missile and drone launch sites, ammunition dumps and communication equipment.

The ceasefire agreement crumbled last week, after Iran’s attack on ships.

US President Donald Trump last Tuesday said the deal was cancelled after Tehran’s missile attacks on three gas and oil vessels in the Strait of Hormuz at the start of the week.