US says Iranian radar and command and control sites struck over the weekend
US central command (Centcom) has said that it struck targets in Iran over the weekend, in a statement that came just minutes after Kuwait announced it was under attack.
Labelling their actions “self-defence”, the US said it hit Iranian “radar and command and control sites for drones in Goruk, Iran and Qeshm Island”.
Centcom said the attack was in response to “aggressive Iranian actions”, including the “shootdown of a U.S. MQ-1 drone that was operating over international waters.”
The US strikes mark the third time that the ceasefire between Iran and America has been broken since it was agreed in early April. On both previous occasions, Tehran and Washington played down the significance of the exchange of strikes and the truce was able to continue.
The latest action comes amid a flurry of diplomatic wrangling between the Trump administration and Iran’s leadership to secure a lasting ceasefire and return shipping to the strait of Hormuz.
Key events
Summary
Hello and welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the crisis in the Middle East.
The Kuwaiti military has said that the country’s air defences are currently intercepting hostile missile and drone attacks, after the US said it conducted strikes on radar and control sites in Iran over the weekend. Kuwaiti state media reported that sirens were sounding across the country on Monday morning.
Minutes after Kuwait reported coming under attack, US central command (Centcom) said it had conducted “strikes on Iranian radar and command and control sites for drones” over the weekend.
The measured and deliberate strikes occurred on Saturday and Sunday in response to aggressive Iranian actions that included the shootdown of a U.S. MQ-1 drone that was operating over international waters. U.S. fighter aircraft swiftly responded by eliminating Iranian air defenses, a ground control station, and two one-way attack drones that posed clear threats to ships transiting regional waters.”
Kuwait was one of a number of Gulf countries to face weeks of reprisal attacks from Iran, after the US and Israel launched their war in February. A ceasefire reached between the US and Iran in April has since largely held.
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