Military tensions between Washington and Tehran have escalated into open conflict. At 6:30 AM Bulgarian time, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed in an official post on the social network X that US forces have completed a new massive round of “punitive” airstrikes on Iranian territory.
About 90 key military sites were hit.
According to the official Pentagon statement, the operation aims to radically reduce Iran's ability to threaten international shipping, commercial ships and civilian sailors in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
What was attacked?
The American command reports high accuracy in hitting the sites. Among the destroyed and damaged 90 targets fall:
Air Defense Systems (ADS) guarding the Iranian coast. Radar stations and coastal surveillance systems used to track commercial vessels. Ballistic missile storage facilities and drone logistics bases. Initial reports from Iranian state media indicate that heavy explosions have occurred in areas of the key port Sirik, city Bandar Abbas and island Qeshm, where there are reports of civilians injured by shrapnel.
The reason for the strikes: Economic and military grip
The immediate reason for the massive American response was the attack on three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz in recent days. Tensions have also increased over the new Omani sea corridor, which Tehran strongly opposes because it bypasses the fees imposed by Iran on passing ships.
In parallel with the military actions, the White House has tightened the economic noose around Iran. The US administration has officially canceled the temporary licensing that allowed Tehran to export oil. President Donald Trump, currently in Ankara for a NATO summit, has declared a definitive end to the ceasefire. US officials have stressed that the strikes are "punitive, not reciprocal" and could continue in the coming hours.
Tehran's response: "A devastating response"
The Iranian Foreign Ministry reacted sharply, condemning both the military strikes and the renewal of oil sanctions. Tehran described Washington's actions as a gross violation of bilateral memoranda and warned that it would take "all necessary measures to protect its national security."
The country's military command and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) have already promised a “devastating response“. Local pro-Iranian factions have already launched retaliatory missile strikes on US bases in Bahrain and Kuwait, raising fears of a chain reaction across the region.
The situation is further complicated by the fact that mass mourning processions and funeral marches for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continue in Iran until the end of today (July 9). The slogans raised among the millions of people are for immediate revenge against the US, which puts the Iranian government under enormous internal pressure to take radical military action. Follow The Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (BTA) and the world's leading news agencies for current developments.