Overview
- U.S. Central Command said President Donald Trump ordered strikes late Wednesday that hit Iranian air‑defense, radar and ground control sites near the Strait of Hormuz as a response to the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter.
- Iranian state media reported explosions along the southern coast and said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck U.S. bases in the Gulf and declared the Strait of Hormuz "completely" closed, a claim Centcom rejected by saying merchant ships continued to transit.
- Centcom announced the U.S. strikes ended after several hours and said they targeted military surveillance, communications and air‑defense systems it described as threats to U.S. forces and international shipping.
- Key battlefield claims remain unverified: Iranian reports of damage to civilian water infrastructure, the IRGC’s claim of striking 18 U.S. targets, and third‑party accounts that a tanker off Oman was hit with crew missing have not been independently confirmed.
- Diplomacy and regional civilian life are under growing strain as mediators attempt talks, Gulf states activate air defenses and markets react to the threat to Hormuz, a chokepoint that normally carries roughly one‑fifth of world oil and LNG flows.