US forces continued on Tuesday to target sites inside Iran, hours before the blockade on Iranian ports went into effect.

These strikes come within the framework of mutual military escalation between the two countries in recent weeks.

A US official told Reuters that US forces launched additional strikes on Tuesday against Iranian military targets to neutralize what he called 'emerging threats,' while official Iranian media confirmed that various sites were subjected to missile bombardment.

The official also announced that the United States is about to launch additional strikes on Iran in anticipation of a blockade that has been threatened to be imposed in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian official media stated that American projectiles and missiles hit a target on Qeshm Island in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, without providing details about the nature of the target or the extent of the resulting damage.

These strikes are the latest round of skirmishes between the United States and Iran, which began last week following Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Striking targets inside Iran

The sound of explosions was heard on Tuesday evening on Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Fars News Agency, adding that the Masan area on the island had been subjected several times in recent days to strikes carried out by the 'American enemy'.

Iranian state television reported five explosions near the Strait of Hormuz, in the vicinity of the coastal city of Bandar Abbas, an area that has been targeted by US strikes in recent days.

State television said: 'Minutes ago, five explosions were heard west of Bandar Abbas,' without providing further details, amid the ongoing tension between Iran and the United States over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The US army also bombed the coastal city of Bushehr, where Iran's only nuclear power plant is located, according to local authorities, amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran.

The bombing also affected the city of Abadan, which houses the oldest oil refinery in the Middle East, as well as the coastal city of Mahshahr, which is also a petrochemical industrial zone, according to IRNA.

Related news

Naval blockade

On Monday, the US army announced details of the naval blockade it intends to impose on Iranian ports, amid the return of military escalation between the two sides.

The Combined Maritime Information Center, led by the US Navy, said the US military would begin imposing the blockade on all Iranian ports and Iranian coastal areas at exactly 8 p.m. Tuesday GMT.

The center added that 'the blockade covers the entire Iranian coast, including but not limited to Iranian ports and oil terminals.'

He stressed that the American blockade 'applies to all ship movements (to and from Iranian ports), regardless of the flag flown on the ships.' The center clarified that 'the blockade will not impede the passage of neutral ships through the Strait of Hormuz, to and from non-Iranian destinations.' It also stated that 'it will allow the transit of humanitarian aid shipments, provided they undergo inspection.'

Trump backs down from imposing fees in Hormuz

In parallel with the continued escalation, US President Donald Trump said he believes that no one should impose fees for crossing the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump, who proposed on Monday that the United States impose a 20 percent transit fee, added, 'I don't think any party should impose fees.'

He continued in statements: 'I don't like the concept of fees, but at the same time, it's not fair for us to protect this strait for the benefit of the entire world.'

The US strikes on sites inside Iran indicate a shift in US strategy from naval strikes to targeting Iranian territory. These developments raise fears of an all-out confrontation in the region, especially with Washington's threat to impose a blockade on Iranian ports. The international community is watching these developments warily, given the potential impact on navigation security in the Strait of Hormuz and rising global oil prices.