US Begins “Self-Defense” Strikes Against Multiple Targets In Iran

Summary

• US begins strikes on Iran for second straight night: according to Centrom, “US forces began launching additional self-defense strikes today at 5:15 p.m. ET against multiple targets in Iran at the Commander in Chief’s direction. The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.”
• Explosions had been heard in the Iranian towns of Sirik, Manab, Bandar Abbas and Bushehr,
• Hegseth confirms imminent attacks on key Iranian facilities
• Trump says “Will be attacking Iran hard again today”
• Trump says “secret mission” has reopened the Strait
• Trump tells Fox he “may keep going” with strikes.
• Trump says Iran took too long to negotiate, and now “will have to pay the price”.
• Tehran claims prior night attacks in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan as fulfilment of its previously vowed ‘retaliation’ – targeted the Fifth Fleet headquarters in Manama, footage shows.
• Iran again signals it could cut off all indirect talks & any negotiations, says it is ‘reviewing’ US talks after latest exchange of missiles.

*  *  *

US Begins strikes on Iran

After multiple previews of the main event, US Central Command said that its forces began launching additional self-defense strikes today at 5:15 p.m. ET against multiple targets in Iran at the Commander in Chief’s direction. “The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.”
 

U.S. Central Command forces began launching additional self-defense strikes today at 5:15 p.m. ET against multiple targets in Iran at the Commander in Chief’s direction. The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 10, 2026

Local Iran media reported that explosions had been heard in the Iranian towns of Sirik, Manab, Bandar Abbas and Bushehr, while Al Hadath reported than an explosion was heard in the Al-Saban military camp in Aden, Yemen.

Additionally, there are unconfirmed reports that retaliatory Iranian ballistic missile launches are already underway, amidst what appears to be the resumption of a new round of U.S. strikes on Iran.

Early reports now indicate that retaliatory Iranian ballistic missile launches are already underway, amidst what appears to be the resumption of a new round of U.S. strikes on Iran.

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 10, 2026

* * * 

Hegseth Signals Imminent Attacks On Key Iranian Facilities, Iran Says “Fully Prepared”

Echoing President trump’s earlier comments, Sectary of War Pet Hegseth just announced that: “CENTCOM will be busy tonight, we will be hitting Iran hard, we will bomb key facilities in Iran.”

🚨🇺🇸 BREAKING: Hegseth announces major strikes on Iran tonight:

“CENTCOM will be busy tonight, we will be hitting Iran hard, we will bomb key facilities in Iran.”

Announcing the strikes before they happen is itself the strategy.

You don’t telegraph a bombing campaign hours in… pic.twitter.com/gwKwQjem2R

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) June 10, 2026

As @MarioNawfal writes, Announcing the strikes before they happen is itself the strategy.

You don’t telegraph a bombing campaign hours in advance unless the message matters more than the surprise.

This is the final-pressure play in its purest form: the bombs are loaded, the targets are picked, and the paper is still on the table waiting for a signature.

An Iranian military source told Tasnim news that:

“The Iranian armed forces are fully prepared tonight. If the Americans take any aggressive action, they will once again face heavy responses. 

The Americans’ idea of ‘controlled escalation’ is foolish, and Iran will not hesitate to dictate new calculations to the Americans.”

Oil prices are up at the highs of the day on the news…

Trump says “Secret Mission” has Allowed 200 Ships, 100 Million Barrels of Oil Through Strait

Confirming our reported from both a week ago (see “As Gulf States Plan Bypass Pipelines, US Military Is Quietly Helping Ships Cross Hormuz“) and this afternoon (“Growing Number Of Oil Tankers Successfully Sneak Through Hormuz, Shrinking Iran’s Leverage“) moments ago Trump posted on Truth Social that he had “directed our Great U.S. Military to execute a secret mission to support Oil Tankers and other Commercial Ships through the Strait of Hormuz.” Of course, the mission wasn’t that secret if we discussed how the US military was helping ship cross the Strait one week ago. 

In any case, Trump added that “this effort has resulted in more than 100 MILLION Barrels of Oil making its way through the Strait, and into the Open Market. More than 200 Commercial Ships have safely traveled through the Strait,” which would explain why oil prices have remained low and confirms what Goldman’s Delta One head, Rich Privorotsky, wrote this morning, namely that “a lot has been thrown at the oil market and it’s simply not going up, which is remarkable given the level of escalation. The only conclusion that really fits the price action is that barrels are still getting through the Strait of Hormuz, visibly or otherwise. There doesn’t seem to be a more rational explanation.”

“This wildly successful effort is because the UNITED STATES of AMERICA CONTROLS the Strait of Hormuz — NOT Iran” Trump concluded.

Now the question is whether Iran, whose leverage in the conflict would be viewed as dramatically reduced as a result of this development, will allow stealthy tankers and other ships, with transponders shut, to continue crossing the strait affirming Trump’s implicit claim that the country no longer has control over the strait, or if Tehran will make a public demonstration of how much control it still has.

Trump says “will be attacking Iran hard again today”

Oil surged, jumping by more than a dollar with WTI rising above $91 with Brent touching $94 after President Trump vowed to strike Iran again and slammed the country for delaying talks on an interim peace deal, after renewed attacks overnight put further strain on a fragile two-month truce.

“We’re going to be attacking them, attacking them very hard,” Trump told reporters at the White House Wednesday. “We hit them hard yesterday, and we’re going to hit them hard again today.”

Trump declined to say what targets US forces would hit in Iran. The president renewed earlier criticism that Tehran has taken too long to negotiate an end to the conflict. 

“I’ve been working with Iran for a number of months, and they should sign their deal,” he said. “It was just tap, tap, tap, I don’t know what they’re doing.”

BREAKING: President Trump says he is going to continue bombing Iran “very hard” after it shot down a U.S. helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz.

“We’re going to be attacking them and attacking them very hard.”

“I’ve been working with Iran for a number of months, and they should… pic.twitter.com/tlO6S10uyo

— Fox News (@FoxNews) June 10, 2026

Trump said he retaliated against the Islamic Republic for shooting down a US Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran has not confirmed shooting down the aircraft and said it was reconsidering whether to persist with negotiations in light of the US attacks.

“The diplomatic process doesn’t happen in a vacuum and to advance any diplomatic process you need a minimum space to be able to move forward,” Esmail Baghaei, a spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, was cited by the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency as saying. “Wherever necessary, our armed forces will respond to the enemy with authority.”

Trump’s comments came after the two sides once again exchanged strikes, underscoring how high tensions are running and the risk that intermittent indirect talks between Iran and the US may be derailed. The overnight clashes followed a direct confrontation between Iran and Israel earlier this week, but halted after Trump called on both sides to stop.

The S&P extended its decline to more than 1% and WTI climbed above $91 a barrel to session highs, after Trump’s comments.

Since almost the start of the conflict, Trump has swung from threats of intensified attacks to touting that a deal is within reach. Even with tensions escalating since last week, he had signaled he wants to contain hostilities and avoid a return to all-out war before the new post. 

A White House official said talks are still ongoing and that the US will exert maximum pressure until a deal is reached. Fox News first reported the status of the talks. The semi-official Iranian Students’ News Agency reported that a Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran on Wednesday to discuss the diplomatic process to end the war.

The US military said it had completed an operation that saw fighter jets strike Iranian air defenses, ground control stations and radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched missiles on four American targets, including shelters housing F-35 fighter jets and a command center for the US military at Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan, state-run IRIB News said on Wednesday.

Iran also said it fired drones at the main US naval base in the Middle East, located in Bahrain, and struck Ali Al Salem air base in Kuwait.  Kuwait’s defense ministry said it had intercepted projectiles early Wednesday, while Jordan said it had intercepted five Iranian missiles.

Tehran said it had exercised its “inherent right to legitimate self defense” and warned regional states not to allow the US and Israel to use their territory as a staging post for strikes on the Islamic Republic.

There were no immediate reports of casualties in any of the attacks.

* * * 

Could ‘Keep Going’ With Strikes: Trump to Fox

More strikes coming? Trump is certainly strongly hinting at this, and yet an overall strategic vision still remains murky and ill-defined. Once again he in a short 12-hour period went from hyping a deal being a few days away, to now threatening yet more attack waves on Iran, in wake of last night’s:

President Trump said Wednesday that he’s close to ordering more strikes on Iran after the country’s attacks targeting American bases in Persian Gulf nations, according to Fox News’ Trey Yingst.

Mr. Trump said he “may keep going” with strikes, which he said would target power plants and bridges, because Iranian negotiators are “tapping the United States along,” according to Yingst.

He wrote on Truth Social just before these comments that Iran will have to “pay the price” after taking too long to proceed with negotiations. 

Trump: Iran Took Too Long To Negotiation, Now Will ‘Pay’

As part of what the United States is calling its latest ‘defensive strikes’ after Iran shot down an Apache helicopter in the Hormuz region, American forces overnight into the early Wednesday hours targeted “air defense, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites” – the Pentagon said. Iran confirmed that there were indeed fresh attacks around Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island, but gave no details on the damage, or info on other strikes potentially conducted elsewhere across the Islamic Republic.

“The operation was a proportional response to recent attacks on U.S. forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters,” US Central Command (CENTCOM) said. Trump is meanwhile again lashing out at Tehran, claiming its military is now a “complete and total mess” – and yet it keeps responding:

Oil reacts, sensing no peaceful off-ramp or de-escalation on the horizon…

Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan Hit Hard by Iranian Overnight Attack

Tehran later claimed attacks in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan as fulfilment of its previously vowed ‘retaliation’ – and given these countries host American forces. This marks merely the second time this week the ceasefire was ignored (or rather, shattered – though the White House is maintaining it’s still on) with major tit-for-tat strikes, as each side asserts that it is acting ‘defensively’.

Iran has been saying it’s going to keep up the pressure on Washington and its Gulf allies through both the ‘battlefield and diplomacy’ – with Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei freshly charging that the US is “undermining” the diplomatic process through “contradictory messages, frequent shifts in its positions and demands, as well as repeated violations of the ceasefire.”

He indicated that at this point there’s not even the “minimum level of conducive conditions” that is “required in order to carry out diplomacy effectively.”

Bahrain and Kuwait got hit hardest in these newest strikes, with reports saying the US Fifth Fleet base came under fire:

BREAKING: Footage shows a ground-level explosion in Manama, Bahrain from an Iranian missile strike in the direction of the US 5th Fleet HQ minutes ago, with up to 20+ separate explosions now reported across the city. pic.twitter.com/LCHlZBGKra

— The Hormuz Letter (@HormuzLetter) June 10, 2026

Iran Touting Both ‘Diplomacy & the Battlefield’

“The Zionist regime is also damaging this process through its repeated violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon,” Baghaei said, adding “any diplomatic process is harmed by the use of force and unlawful actions.”

“Diplomacy and the battlefield are not separate matters. Together they serve as instruments for safeguarding Iran’s national interests and security,” he stressed in a familiar refrain of late.

He also indicated the question of negotiations will be “reviewed” in light of last night’s developments, and further emphasized, “Wherever necessary, our armed forces will respond to the enemy with authority.“

Only when you see it with your own eyes you start to appreciate how impressive a salvo of 10 Kheybar-Shekan Aero-Ballistic missiles is…

(especially when timed on purpose at dawn) pic.twitter.com/6JpTRBvBHW

— Patarames (@Pataramesh) June 10, 2026

“Every Side Believes They Can Control the Escalation”

But it’s also clear Tehran feels it must assert strong red lines immediately and without hesitation if it is to survive this now several months-long military confrontation with Washington. On this, longtime regional war correspondent and analyst Elijah Magnier has some insight as to each side’s calculus: 

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Magnier said it’s a volatile situation with no “stable political exit” as peace is far from being achieved while Lebanon and Gaza remain outside of any final settlement.

“The most dangerous thing is that every side believes they can control the escalation. However, a repeated incident can erode restraint, and if talks collapse completely, this controlled escalation could widen into a much larger conflict,” he said.

History has shown if “one strike crosses the red line” the attacks can spiral out of control, said Magnier.

Indeed in many ways that’s how we got here in the first place.

Vital water infrastructure reportedly struck in Iran during this new round of intense but brief escalation:

U.S. military strikes reportedly hit drinking water storage tanks in the Bamani district of Sirik county, Hormozgan province, Iran. pic.twitter.com/GMw8Ha9DaH

— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 10, 2026

The White House believed it could control the outcome from day one of Operation Epic Fury, and then perhaps a bit of panic set among US officials in when it was realized the government in Tehran would not so easily fall, and that the military apparatus would become hardened, and its power expanded. 

Reports of another US MQ-9 Reaper drone shot down over Iran:

Footage of U.S. MQ-9 Reaper falling down over Jam county, Bushehr province, Iran after it was hit. https://t.co/nJHBkyF2cz pic.twitter.com/99evGPBrgm

— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 10, 2026

From there it took many weeks to get the naval armada in place, enough to where a blockade could be enacted against Iran’s ports and its crucial oil exports. The White House continues to face several ‘bad’ and ‘worse’ options for dealing with the crisis, as energy prices are set to soar this summer.

More Latest Developments

via Newsquawk…

• US President Trump told ABC that the US was responding to Iran and that it is important to respond to Iran downing the helicopter, as well as noted that the response is very strong and powerful.
• US VP JD Vance said the US is very close to reaching a deal that would address Iran’s nuclear programme for the long term, which could come next week or months from now, but absolutely before the midterms, according to CBS.
• White House senior official said nothing has changed in their position regarding an agreement with Iran and it is still close despite the strikes.
• A US official said the US military carried out strikes on almost 20 targets inside of Iran, but noted preliminary assessments indicate most Iranian missiles and drones were successfully intercepted.
• Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Baghaei said they need to reassess, following the overnight clashes, when questioned on talks with the US, SNN reported.
• Iranian Foreign Ministry statement strongly condemns America’s crime in its military aggression against Iran.
• An Iranian military source tells IRIB that no offensive military operations have been conducted in the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours. Warned that if the enemy carries out another hostile action under the pretext of the military helicopter crash, it will face a decisive response.
• A massive fire in the centre of Erbil and an explosion has been heard near the US base in the vicinity, Mehr news reported citing sources.
• Local sources reported that an explosion was heard in the area of Qeshm city, Mehr News reports. However, this was later denied by the Qeshm governor.
• UN Security Council debated reviving the Iran sanctions panel, although Russia and China opposed the revival of the Iran sanctions committee, according to Tasnim.
• Israeli air raids hit the Lebanese towns of Touline, Srifa and Kafra. It was separately reported that missiles were spotted from Lebanon that were headed towards Kiryat Shmona and its surroundings, while rockets launched from Lebanon towards Upper Galilee were also detected.
• UKMTO has received a report of an incident 20nm Northeast of Oman’s Sohar.
• UKMTO reported an incident involving a cargo vessel 88 nautical miles southwest of Balhaf, Yemen.