TEHRAN/WASHINGTON, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Fresh U.S.-Iran clashes continued from Saturday despite a memorandum of understanding (MoU) inked last month, as the two sides claimed different status quo of the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Sunday that it "completed a new wave of offensive strikes against Iran," hitting multiple targets with precision munitions "to degrade Iran's ability to continue attacking international shipping flowing through the Strait of Hormuz."
CENTCOM spokesperson Tim Hawkins said earlier that U.S. forces had intercepted an Iranian cruise missile and a one-way attack drone.
Iranian media said U.S. strikes were concentrated in southern Iran overnight, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, including the provinces of Hormozgan, Khuzestan and Sistan-Baluchestan.
According to Iran's state-run Press TV, explosions were heard in the key port cities of Sirik, Bandar Abbas and Jask, while a telecommunication tower near Sirik was reportedly hit. Qatar's Al Jazeera television, citing local reports, said fresh explosions were also heard on Qeshm Island.
The official IRNA news agency said one person was killed and four others were injured after a projectile struck an agricultural water pumping station in Mahshahr, Khuzestan Province. The semi-official Tasnim news agency separately reported that U.S. attacks killed one person and wounded two others on Farur Island.
Iran later announced a new round of retaliatory operations against U.S. military facilities across the Gulf. In statements carried by its official Sepah News outlet on Monday, the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had launched missile and drone strikes against U.S. bases in Jordan, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman.
The IRGC claimed it had set fire to missile silos and fuel tanks at Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan, hit helicopter maintenance facilities, a P-8 surveillance aircraft hangar and a command center at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain, and destroyed a fuel depot, a Patriot air defense system and an FPS radar installation at U.S. bases in Kuwait.
Jordan's military said its air defense systems intercepted and shot down four missiles that entered the kingdom's airspace from Iran early Monday, according to the state-run Petra news agency.
In Bahrain, multiple air raid sirens sounded on Monday, with the Interior Ministry urging residents to seek shelter. The Bahrain headquarters of a U.S. commercial company was hit and caught fire, Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency reported.
The latest exchanges of fire came amid mounting disagreement over the status of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of global oil delivery passed before the Iran war.
Early Sunday, Iran's IRGC announced that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed "until further notice" and until "the end of U.S. interference in this region."
The U.S.-led Joint Maritime Information Center and the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command said Sunday that the southern route remains operational despite Iranian claims, adding that "U.S. forces are prepared to maintain freedom of navigation and safeguard lawful commerce."
Around 20 commercial vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz in coordination with the U.S. military over the previous 24 hours, reported Axios, citing a U.S. official.
The conflicting claims stem largely from differing interpretations of the MoU signed by the United States and Iran in Muscat, Oman, on June 18. Under the MoU, the two countries were scheduled to hold negotiations within 60 days to reach a final agreement.
According to Al Jazeera, Article 5 of the MoU does not specify how maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz should be managed after hostilities subside.
In practice, two transit corridors have emerged: a northern route monitored by Iran and a southern passage along Oman's coastline, where U.S. forces coordinate navigation assistance.
While Tehran considers the northern channel the legitimate shipping lane and therefore argues the strait has been closed, Washington maintains that commercial traffic continues through the southern route and therefore rejects Iran's closure claim.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Sunday that arrangements for the future administration of maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz must be made through consultations with Oman.
Financial markets have responded to the heightened risks. Brent crude, the main international benchmark, rose more than 4 percent to 79.17 U.S. dollars a barrel by 0300 GMT on Monday, the highest since June 22, Al Jazeera reported.■
