US Central Command completed its ninth consecutive night of strikes against Iran on Monday, targeting command centres, air defence sites, missile and drone launch facilities, maritime capabilities and communications networks, as the confirmed death toll among American military personnel in the renewed fighting rose to three and the Strait of Hormuz situation deteriorated sharply overnight.
A US service member was killed in northern Iraq on Saturday during a controlled detonation of unexploded ordnance from a downed Iranian drone, with a second soldier wounded in the same incident. A third death was confirmed by CENTCOM on Sunday. The US Embassy in Bahrain issued an emergency alert to American citizens warning that Iran may be planning imminent attacks on unspecified locations in Manama and urging all Americans to remain vigilant.
The IRGC said two oil tankers exploded attempting to use what Iran called an unsafe and dangerous route south of the Strait of Hormuz. US strikes in recent days have widened to civilian infrastructure, including the Bonji desalination plant, which cut off water supplies to approximately 10,000 people. Iran has retaliated by striking targets in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan, with missiles landing near Aqaba, a city close to Israeli territory.
A US official told ABC News that fighter jets stationed in the UK and Germany are being redeployed to the Middle East. Iran fired jets stationed in the UK and Germany to the Middle East amid warnings from Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz that Israel will strike back without conditions if attacked.
