Military Site in Bushehr, Qeshm Island, Bandar Abbas, Chabahar: Key Iranian Targets Rocked by US Strikes

The strikes, executed by US Central Command, were in response to an attack by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on a commercial vessel.

Explosions were reported across several cities in southern Iran early on Sunday after the United States launched a fresh round of military strikes, according to Iranian state media and US officials, marking a further escalation in tensions centred on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB and other state-affiliated media reported strikes or explosions in multiple locations, including:

The US military said the vessel suffered significant engine room damage and an onboard fire, adding that one civilian crew member was missing.

Hours earlier, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had met Oman’s top diplomat in Muscat to discuss maritime security and safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz. However, no public commitments emerged from the talks.

Iran later announced that it had fired warning shots at a container ship after accusing it of attempting to transit the strategic waterway via an “unapproved route” and ignoring instructions to alter course through Iranian territorial waters.

The IRGC said it would close the Strait of Hormuz “until the end of US interference in the region” and warned that any further US military action would be met with a “forceful response”.

The latest developments come as diplomatic efforts continue to prevent a wider conflict. Oman has been mediating talks involving Iran and Qatar aimed at easing tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes. However, the latest exchange of military action has raised fresh doubts about the prospects for de-escalation.