Fresh strikes on southern Iran were launched by U.S. military forces early Tuesday morning targeting Iranian missile sites and vessels attempting to lay anti-shipping mines in the contested Strait of Hormuz.
The targeted strikes were done “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” but the military was “using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” Capt. Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for the U.S. military’s Central Command, said in a statement as reported by AP.
Following the strikes, the BBC reports U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a deal was still possible and pointed to talks on Tuesday between Iran’s top negotiator and foreign minister and Qatar’s prime minister.
“We’ll see if we can make progress. I think it’s a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document, so it’ll take a few days,” Rubio told reporters during an official visit to India.
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He said President Donald Trump had “expressed his desire to make it”.
“He’s either going to make a good deal or no deal,” Rubio added.
When pressed again for comment on Tuesday’s early morning strikes, Rubio elaborated on the strategic nature of the action: “The straits have to be open. They’re going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open. What’s happening there is unlawful, it’s illegal, it’s unsustainable for the world, it’s unacceptable.”
Capt Hawkins said the U.S. strikes targeted an area near Bandar Abbas, a southern port city and the site of one of Iran’s largest naval bases, that sits on the Strait of Hormuz, according to the New York Times.
Iranian state media had earlier reported local officials in Bandar Abbas were investigating after explosions were heard.