Istanbul / Anadolu

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on Wednesday the start of additional strikes on Iran, amid the ongoing escalation between Washington and Tehran for days.

CENTCOM said in a post on its account on the US platform X that "at 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time today (10:00 GMT), US Central Command forces began conducting a wave of strikes against Iran."

It considered that the goal of the strikes is to "undermine the military capabilities used by Iranian forces to attack commercial shipping vessels in the Strait of Hormuz."

Since Sunday dawn, the United States has been conducting daily raids on several cities and islands in Iran, claiming to respond to Tehran targeting commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

On Tuesday evening, CENTCOM announced launching new attacks and resuming the naval blockade on Iran.

In response, Tehran retaliates by shelling what it says are US military installations in Arab countries, while some of those countries announced that the Iranian attacks resulted in civilian casualties and damage to civilian facilities.

Iran targets any vessel attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic corridor for global energy supplies, without coordinating with it or if it takes a route other than the one it specifies.

On Saturday, Oman and Iran agreed to continue discussions on ensuring navigational safety and freedom of transit in the strait, amid reports that Muscat is preparing a proposal to organize the passage of ships through two corridors with separate arrangements.

Washington on Friday demanded that Tehran provide a public commitment not to target ships in the Strait of Hormuz and to keep all its channels open for commercial navigation, according to US media citing unnamed officials.

The Strait of Hormuz region has been witnessing security tensions against the backdrop of the war launched by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28, 2026.

Washington and Tehran had previously signed a memorandum of understanding last June that included a ceasefire, mediated by Qatar and Pakistan, paving the way for a final agreement to end the war, before US President Donald Trump announced on July 8 of this year the termination of the ceasefire due to renewed escalation.