Two people were killed and several others injured following a U.S. strike on Iran’s Larak Island, an Iranian official said, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency, as Washington and Tehran resumed direct attacks after weeks of relative calm.
The casualties were reported after U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to a U.S. official cited by Reuters. The official said Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces had been observed preparing to launch rockets carrying sea mines into the strategic waterway.
Iranian authorities have described the attack as causing deaths and injuries among soldiers and civilians. The exact circumstances of the reported casualties and the identities of those killed were not immediately clear.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard vowed a response to the strike, while Iranian media reported that the United States carried out the attack using drones.
The strike marked the first known U.S. attack on Iranian territory since late July and triggered a renewed exchange of fire. Iran subsequently launched ballistic missiles towards U.S. forces in Jordan, with Jordan saying its air defences intercepted the incoming missiles.
The latest escalation has raised fresh concerns about security in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy route and the potential for further disruption to shipping and oil supplies.
