US strikes Iranian launchers on Larak island amid strait of Hormuz tensions

US says it attacked Larak Island to prevent launch of sea mines, prompting reprisals against airbases used by US forces, with tanker fire also reported in strait

Iran has launched retaliatory strikes on airbases in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates after the US attacked Iranian rocket launchers in the strait of Hormuz, the first such hostilities in a month.

Hours later, Iranian state TV later reported that a supertanker had caught fire after hitting two naval mines while attempting to pass through the southern side of the strait. It ‌did not identify the vessel or provide information ​about its crew.

The Islamic ⁠Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned that other ships violating ⁠its rules would face ​the ​same fate and ​said compliance with ​its regulations ‌for ​passage ​through the strait was mandatory.

The last known ‌US strikes on Iran were in late July and the war has reached a stalemate in recent weeks, with Washington threatening ​to impose costly sanctions on countries that support Iran.

The latest exchange of fire was sparked late on Sunday by a US attack on Larak Island in the strait. “I can confirm that earlier today US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak island,” a US official said. “Islamic ⁠Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the strait of Hormuz.”

Iran’s ⁠Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said the US attack killed and wounded several soldiers and citizens and ​would be met with “punishment” from ‌Tehran, Iranian state media reported.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the US attack was ‌a drone strike. The Mehr news agency quoted the IRGC as saying its air defences had shot down a US mq-9 drone over the strait, causing it to crash ‌into Gulf waters.

In response to the attack, the IRGC “targeted technical infrastructure, maintenance facilities, and enemy fighter jet positions at the US-operated King Hussein and al-Azraq airbases in Jordan” with ballistic missiles, causing “heavy damage”, according to state TV.

On Sunday night, Reuters reported a US source as saying that all incoming missiles on US forces in Jordan had been intercepted with no significant impact so far.

Later, Iran’s army ⁠said it ⁠launched a drone attack on US forces in ​the United Arab Emirates’ al Minhad airbase early on Monday, Iranian state ⁠TV reported. It said the attack was in ‌response to the Larak Island assault.

There was no immediate comment from ⁠the UAE on Iran’s claim ​and ‌the UAE’s ​defence ministry ​had not issued a statement on the matter.

Hours after the attacks, US president Donald Trump claimed in a social media post that Iran’s energy hub of Kharg island was being “blown to smithereens” but gave no further details.

The White House and ⁠the US defense department did not immediately respond to requests for comment and there was no immediate response from Iran about the Kharg island claim.

Attacking Kharg, which handled 90% of ⁠Iran’s oil exports before the war, would severely disrupt the Islamic republic’s energy trade and put huge pressure on its economy.

The US said its earlier attacks on Larak island were aimed at preventing Iran from launching more sea mines into the strait.

Trump said last week that all mines had been detonated or removed from the international waters of the strait of Hormuz and Iran had been told that any ship or boat placing new mines would be destroyed.

The US and Israel attacked Iran on 28 February and Iran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases. The Iran war has now ⁠crossed its six-month mark.

Diplomatic efforts, spearheaded by mediators including Pakistan and Qatar, have tried for months to bring an end to the war to no avail.

While a ceasefire was agreed in April and a memorandum of understanding towards a final peace deal was signed in June, no agreement has been forthcoming and Washington has since declared “economic warfare” against Tehran .

US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on ​Lebanon have killed thousands ​and displaced millions. Eighteen US service ​members have been killed in the conflict.

The war has ​led to the ‌blockade of the ​strait of ​Hormuz, which before the conflict accounted for the transit of about a fifth of the world’s oil barrels consumed.