US bombs Iran’s Larak Island

US missiles struck Iran’s Larak Island on Sunday, the latest American attack in a war that has lasted over six months.

Al Jazeera, quoting US sources, reports that the US forces bombed rocket launchers of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the country’s Larak Island. The sources claimed the targets were preparing to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz, a claim Iran has denied.

There’s been no official confirmation of the attack from the Central Africa Command (CENTCOM). However, the IRGC has said the attack on the island killed several Iranian fighters and civilians.

The IRGC spokesperson, Sardar Mohebi, accused the US of making “a strategic and fatal mistake”, for which it will pay consequences “in both the economic and military arenas.”

Al Jazeera also reported that Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, in a statement, urged Muslim heads of state to “recognise their real enemy, understand its plans and confront it.”

The last US attack on Iran was on 29 July. PREMIUM TIMES reported that the attack came hours after President Donald Trump threatened to hit the country “hard” in retaliation for attacks on US bases in Jordan.

Mr Trump’s threat also came only five days after he abruptly suspended his consecutive 13-day bombing campaign, and Tehran paused its retaliatory strikes, which targeted US interests in the Gulf.

The US war with Iran has now lasted almost seven months. Two weeks ago, the Iran-US MoU, signed on 17 June, expired. It marked the end of a 60-day deadline during which both countries were supposed to end the war and reach an agreement on Iran’s nuclear programme.

Last week, the US announced a new round of economic sanctions on Iran that were aimed at isolating the country economically.

The planned sanctions, dubbed “Operation Economic Outcast,” involved isolating and dedollarising countries doing business with Iran.

The Treasury Department also sanctioned nearly 60 corporations, individuals and vessels in multiple jurisdictions that it says enabled the Iranian regime’s “recklessness.” The list included multiple Chinese nationals.