US Strikes Iranian Drone Site Near Strait of Hormuz

The United States has carried out new strikes against an Iranian drone operation near the Strait of Hormuz, a US official said, hours after President Donald Trump dismissed an Iranian report of a deal to restore traffic through the strategic waterway.

The official told Reuters that the US military shot down four Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in the port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth. Washington described the action as defensive and said it was intended to protect US forces and commercial shipping while maintaining the ceasefire with Iran.

Iran’s Tasnim news agency cited a military source as saying that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Navy had fired toward a US oil tanker trying to pass through the strait, forcing it to turn back. Iranian media later said four vessels had been turned back by warning shots early on Thursday.

Trump said no country would control the waterway after Iranian state television reported that an unofficial draft agreement would see Iran and Oman jointly manage traffic through the strait. He also appeared to threaten Oman, saying: “Nobody’s going to control [the strait]. It’s international waters and Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that, they’ll be fine.”

(reuters, mja)