Florida, July 19 (ANI): US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it carried out another series of military operations targeting Iranian assets, marking the eighth consecutive night of strikes against Tehran-backed facilities in the region.
According to an official statement posted on X, the operation was conducted late Saturday under the direction of the White House.
“US Central Command (CENTCOM) completed another round of strikes against Iran on July 18 at 11:30 p.m. ET, at the Commander in Chief’s direction,” the statement said.
During the operation, US forces targeted multiple strategic locations, including Iranian coastal surveillance networks, air defence infrastructure, maritime assets, and missile and drone storage facilities.
CENTCOM said the primary objective was to further degrade Iran’s military capabilities.
The military action also served as a direct response to attacks on US personnel the previous day.
“American military assets also targeted Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces that launched attacks against US service members in Jordan late Friday,” the command said.
Reaffirming its operational posture, CENTCOM said US military personnel in the Middle East remain “highly vigilant, focused, lethal, and ready.”
The latest strikes were also intended to punish Iranian forces following the deaths of two American service members during an attack attributed to Tehran-backed forces in Jordan.
CENTCOM said the operation was designed to “swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces who launched attacks against American service members in Jordan last night.”
Authorised by US President Donald Trump, the military action was also intended to “further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz,” according to CENTCOM.
The command added that during the eighth consecutive night of operations, US forces successfully struck Iranian military coastal surveillance and air defence facilities, maritime capabilities, and missile and drone storage sites.
It said the strikes specifically targeted Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) units believed to be responsible for the July 17 attacks on American positions in Jordan.
CENTCOM also highlighted the scale of the US military presence in the region, stating that more than 50,000 American service members are deployed across the Middle East.
The command said the latest operations followed an earlier announcement confirming that two US soldiers were killed on Friday while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. Another service member remains missing.
According to CENTCOM, the latest casualties bring the total number of US military personnel killed since hostilities escalated on February 28 following joint US-Israeli strikes to 16.
The command said four American service members who were injured were evacuated to hospitals in Jordan and have since been discharged, while others treated for minor injuries have returned to duty.
Iranian state media, meanwhile, reported that the latest US operations targeted fuel infrastructure at the Al-Azraq US base in Jordan. The report followed claims by the IRGC that it had struck American aircraft deployed in the country using missiles and drones.
The latest escalation comes after Washington launched military operations earlier this month, accusing Tehran of threatening commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has since launched repeated attacks on American bases across Gulf nations.
The conflict has intensified following the collapse of an interim diplomatic framework intended to reduce tensions. US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had signed a 14-point agreement on June 17 aimed at halting hostilities and negotiating a permanent settlement within 60 days.
However, the diplomatic process broke down on July 8 when Trump declared the agreement “over.” Tehran subsequently withdrew from the memorandum of understanding, accusing Washington of violating its commitments.
Reacting to the developments, Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei criticised the US administration.
In a statement posted on X, Khamenei said repeated breaches of the agreement had demonstrated that “the signature of the US President is utterly worthless and devoid of credibility.”
He warned that if the United States continued to escalate the conflict, Iran and the broader “Resistance Front” would respond.
Major General Mohsen Rezaei, a senior military adviser to the supreme leader, also warned through Iranian state media that Tehran was prepared to launch “full-scale offensive operations” if US strikes continued, adding that Iran would no longer limit itself to proportional retaliation. (ANI)
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