The United States has launched a third consecutive night of military strikes against Iranian targets, hitting coastal surveillance systems and drone facilities, as President Donald Trump formally notified Congress of renewed hostilities and ordered the reimposition of a naval blockade on Iranian ports. The U.S. Central Command confirmed the strikes, stating they will continue imposing a heavy cost on Iranian forces and degrade their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial shipping in the strategic waterway. Explosions were reported Monday night in the southern port cities of Sirik, Bandar Abbas and Jask.
Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that the United States is reinstating the blockade, preventing Iranian ships from entering or leaving, and declared the U.S. would serve as the guardian of the Strait of Hormuz, imposing a 20 percent toll on all cargo shipped through the vital waterway, a move he called a matter of fairness. The U.S. Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Centre said the blockade would take effect Tuesday and apply to all vessel traffic regardless of flag, covering the entire Iranian coastline including ports and oil terminals, though it would not impede neutral transit passage to non-Iranian destinations and humanitarian shipments would be permitted subject to inspection. The blockade follows an initial implementation from April to June, during which CENTCOM redirected more than 140 vessels and disabled nine non-compliant ships.
Iranian forces retaliated forcefully, launching missile and drone strikes against U.S. military bases in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman, while also targeting two United Arab Emirates oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. The attacks on the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah killed one crew member and injured eight others, according to the UAE's Ministry of Defense. Iranian media reported explosions near Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced it had shot down two U.S. drones near Bandar Abbas and struck U.S. facilities in Bahrain, destroying HIMARS rocket launchers, fuel depots, Patriot systems and radar installations. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the U.S. actions have jeopardized regional peace and security, calling on the international community to hold Washington accountable.
Trump's notification letter to Congress, dated July 10, is seen by his administration as opening a new 60-day window to use the military in the region without congressional approval, though questions have been raised about whether he can continue operations without authorization. The president said the Iran memorandum of understanding signed in June was a test that Iran failed, and he vowed to hit them very hard in the coming days. Meanwhile, traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has plummeted to its lowest level in two months amid the escalating exchanges, with maritime data showing only 14 ships transiting the waterway on Sunday.
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