Military tensions in the Middle East have reached a critical point after US Central Command (US Central Command - CENTCOM) announced the conduct of a massive new wave of air strikes on Iranian territory. The attack is aimed at degrading Tehran's defense capabilities and ensuring free access to vital sea lanes. According to official information released by the US military command, US forces have struck key Iranian coastal defense systems and cruise missile depots located on the strategic island Great Tunb in the Strait of Hormuz.
Dozens of casualties and dire humanitarian situation in southern Iran
The consequences of the new bombings have caused an acute humanitarian crisis in the southern parts of the country. In an official statement, retransmitted by the state news agency Tasnim, The Ministry of Health in Tehran reported that at least 35 people have died as a result of the latest US attacks in the southern provinces. Health authorities specify that the number of injured has exceeded 300 people, with hospitals in the region under enormous pressure. The Iranian state broadcaster IRIB reported serious destruction of civilian and industrial infrastructure, including incidents and panic near medical facilities in the city of Ahvaz, where an emergency evacuation of patients was necessary.
Iran threatens with global energy shock and blockade
The reaction of the political leadership in Tehran was extremely harsh, marking the final collapse of the previously reached temporary ceasefire. Iranian Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf made an official statement, carried by the Mehr news agency, in which he announced that the country was in „existential war with America“.
Tehran has issued a direct warning to Washington that the conflict is already escalating into a full-scale war without limits. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has threatened to completely halt the export of any energy resources from the entire region in response to the US-imposed naval blockade of Iranian ports. The Iranian side has declared that „oil and gas exports from the region will be for everyone or no one“, which puts global supplies through the Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of Bab under immediate threat el-Mandeb.
Washington's response: No concessions to threats
On the other hand, US President Donald Trump, quoted by Reuters during his speech at a defense forum in Pennsylvania, demonstrated a firm position and refused to set specific deadlines for Tehran to return to the negotiating table. The US head of state stressed that Iranian leaders “know very well what the situation is“ and “they need to start behaving properly“. Military officials quoted by US media confirmed that the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will remain in force, and CENTCOM has already neutralized and stopped several merchant ships that tried to violate the restrictions and reach the Iranian oil terminal on Kharg Island.
Global markets have already reacted to the escalation, with the price of crude oil type “Brent“ marked a sharp jump on international stock exchanges. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) issued a warning that the ongoing conflict could have catastrophic consequences for the global economy in the coming months due to the depletion of strategic energy reserves.