The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said it carried out a new wave of offensive strikes against Iran on July 12, targeting dozens of sites at multiple locations with precision munitions. According to CENTCOM, the operation was aimed at degrading Iran’s ability to continue attacking international shipping transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
CENTCOM said U.S. forces struck Iranian military air-defense systems, coastal radar sites, missile and drone capabilities, and small boats. The operation involved U.S. fighter aircraft, naval vessels, one-way attack aerial drones, and, for the first time, one-way attack sea drones. The command said U.S. forces remain prepared to ensure freedom of navigation for commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
CENTCOM spokesman Capt. Hawkins said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz within the past hour. He added that U.S. aircraft shot down one Iranian cruise missile and one one-way attack drone. CENTCOM also said additional strikes began at 5:00 p.m. ET on July 12, while the IRGC said its retaliatory actions were ongoing.
The IRGC described its latest attacks as a first-stage response to U.S. strikes on Iran’s coastal bases. It said it launched missiles and drones at Jordan’s Prince Hassan Airbase, igniting fuel tanks and ammunition depots. Iranian media also reported a large retaliatory strike targeting U.S. military positions across the Gulf, while Press TV reported an explosion at a U.S. military base in Bahrain. Iran’s Mehr News Agency later reported preliminary accounts of explosions in parts of Bushehr province.
Iranian officials also reported multiple U.S. strikes inside the country. IRNA said a U.S. airstrike on the port of Mahshahr in southwest Iran killed one person and wounded four. Iran’s deputy governor of Khuzestan said two locations near Ahvaz and several other cities and counties in the province were struck at 01:35. Separately, Iran’s foreign ministry said talks held in Muscat on Saturday focused on managing the Strait of Hormuz, while alleging the United States pressured Oman to block any outcome.
A U.N. spokesperson said Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern over the escalation in the Gulf and urged the United States and Iran to resume talks, exercise maximum restraint, and restore freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, The New York Times, citing a U.S. official, reported that a U.S. strike on Iranian military targets late Sunday local time may have been larger in scale than an earlier strike carried out the same day.
Renewed U.S.–Iran tensions have pushed oil prices higher, increasing expectations that the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates to control inflation. The two-year U.S. Treasury yield, which is highly sensitive to Fed policy, briefly climbed to 4.24%, its highest level since February 2025, while the 10-year yield rose to 4.59%. Markets now see a near-certain chance of a Fed rate hike in September, up from around 66% a week ago, as investors react to escalating geopolitical risks, including recent attacks involving Iran and strikes on Russian refineries.
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