US Strikes Iranian Sites After Drones Intercepted Near Strait Of Hormuz

U.S. forces struck Iranian coastal surveillance sites on Saturday after shooting down drones launched by Iran towards the Strait of Hormuz, marking the latest escalation in a three-month-old war that has disrupted energy supplies and complicated efforts to secure a negotiated settlement.

The latest exchange highlights the challenge facing ongoing U.S.-Iran negotiations to end the conflict, with military confrontations continuing even as both sides pursue an interim agreement. According to Reuters, disagreements over sanctions relief, Iranian oil revenues, the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s nuclear programme have stalled progress, while the conflict’s impact on a key global oil transit route has increased pressure for a settlement.

The U.S. military said it carried out strikes on Iranian radar and surveillance facilities after intercepting four drones launched towards the Strait of Hormuz. A U.S. official told Reuters the drones were believed to have been targeting maritime traffic in the region. U.S. Central Command said on X that the strikes targeted surveillance sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island, both located along the strategic waterway.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had launched missiles at U.S. bases in the region in retaliation for American strikes. The force also said it had fired on four tankers attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz without its permission.

Kuwaiti state media reported that the country’s air defences were intercepting missile and drone attacks of undisclosed origin, while sirens sounded in Bahrain and residents were urged to seek shelter. Iran said it had struck U.S. bases in both countries with ballistic missiles, but the U.S. military said six missiles were intercepted and a seventh failed to reach its target.

The United States and Iran have been engaged in largely indirect negotiations aimed at securing an interim agreement that would halt the war while leaving issues such as Iran’s nuclear programme to later talks, Reuters reported. However, periodic military clashes have made a breakthrough difficult.

As part of any agreement, Tehran is seeking access to billions of dollars in oil revenue, waivers on sanctions affecting crude exports, the lifting of a U.S. blockade on its ports and leverage over the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has effectively blocked the strait, through which about a fifth of the world’s oil passed before the war began.

U.S. President Donald Trump is facing growing domestic political pressure as higher fuel prices linked to the conflict weigh on consumers. Speaking to NBC News’ “Meet the Press” in excerpts released on Friday, Trump said that while most of Iran’s drone and missile production facilities had been destroyed, Tehran still retained part of its missile arsenal.

"They have some missiles, they have some drones. I would say percentage wise, maybe 21%-22% of their missiles. It's a lot of missiles, but it's not what it was when we first attacked," Trump told the programme.

Asked why Iran’s leaders, despite the pressure they face, were not moving more quickly towards an agreement, Trump said:

"Because they are strong. They're proud. There are things they never thought they'd be doing that they're going to have to do, they've got no choice, and it takes a little while."

After the United States and Israel launched the war against Iran on February 28, Tehran fired missiles and drones at Gulf states hosting U.S. military bases and largely halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflict has pushed up oil prices and disrupted global supply chains. Reuters reported on Friday that the United Nations World Food Programme warned rising fuel and transport costs were pushing millions of people closer to hunger.

Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, told CNN on Friday that a peace agreement depended on the Trump administration unfreezing $24 billion in Iranian assets. He also warned that the United States would "enter into a dark corridor" if it resumed attacks.

In Lebanon, the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement said on Friday it had carried out two attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, including near the recently captured Beaufort Castle. Lebanese security officials said Israeli air strikes hit towns across southern Lebanon.

Iran has reaffirmed its support for Hezbollah while demanding that Israel withdraw from southern Lebanon. Tehran has also made a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah a condition of any agreement with Washington to resolve the war.

The latest round of fighting between Hezbollah and Israel began at the start of March. Hezbollah said its actions were being carried out in support of Tehran.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem this week rejected a U.S.-brokered agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government aimed at halting the fighting. The proposal did not provide for an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah was not involved in the negotiations.

Israel has continued its strikes in southern Lebanon and has said its forces will neither withdraw nor halt operations there despite increasing friction with Washington.

Lebanese parliament speaker and Hezbollah ally Nabih Berri said on Friday he would support Hezbollah’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon if Israeli forces simultaneously left the territory they currently occupy.

Residents in Lebanon, Gaza, northern Israel and Kuwait have all come under fire this week despite U.S.-arranged ceasefires that Trump said involved "shooting in a more moderate manner", rather than a complete halt to hostilities.

(With inputs from Reuters)