The US military struck Iran’s Qeshm island on Monday night, attacking a missile launcher after an Iranian surface-to-air missile brought down an American drone over waters east of the Strait of Hormuz, reports said, quoting US officials.
Iranian media published images purportedly showing the interception and destruction of a US MQ-9 Reaper drone.
The US strike was first while Iranian state media reported several explosions on the strategically located island
The Iranian missile had been fired
The Iranian missile had been fired by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at an American aircraft in the Strait of Hormuz, Axios later reported, quoting a US official.
A US fighter jet subsequently destroyed the missile launcher on Qeshm island in self-defence, the official said.
It was the latest in a series of limited strikes carried out by Washington in recent weeks, the Journal said.
Strikes have been carried out on a smaller
Strikes have been carried out on a smaller scale and purposefully kept secret so as not to indicate any intent of resuming its major military campaign against Iran, it added.
The US Central Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Oil prices rose in early Asian trade after reports of the strikes raised concerns about an escalation of the conflict and prolonged disruption to Middle East oil supplies.
Brent crude futures rose 0.5 per cent to $105.25 per barrel while West Texas Intermediate crude was also up 0.5 per cent to $96.93 per barrel.
Earlier on Monday, US President Donald Trump raised
Earlier on Monday, US President Donald Trump raised doubts about whether he would follow through on a threatened resumption of military strikes against Iran and said a deal with Tehran could happen.
Asked by reporters if he was considering striking Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections, Mr Trump replied “no”.
“We had a war with Iran. We won,” Mr Trump told reporters Monday. “I don’t know if you even call it a war because we haven’t been doing any fighting for months.”
Washington and Tehran have been at war since February 28.
