U.S. Attacks Island in Strait of Hormuz; Iran Retaliates With Missile Fire

U.S. forces attacked two Iranian rocket launchers attempting to disperse sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to U.S. Central Command. Hours later, Iran retaliated by firing a few missiles toward Jordan, all of which were intercepted, according to a person familiar with the Iranian attack who was not authorized to discuss the attack publicly. Several thousand U.S. military personal are stationed at bases in Jordan. The U.S. attack was the first by the United States against Iran in a month and appeared to be limited rather than a resumption of large-scale American bombing. But the back-and-forth raises the risk of a new round military strikes by both sides. Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for Central Command, said that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps forces had been observed preparing to launch rockets armed with mines from Larak Island into the waters of the surrounding strait, a vital shipping waterway for oil and gas. As of last week, U.S. forces had cleared the mines that Iran had planted in the strait, according to Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of Central Command. Immediately after the U.S. strikes, the Revolutionary Guards said the attack “will be responded to with punishment on the aggressor,” according to Iran’s state broadcaster. The Iranian news agency Tasnim said that two people had been killed in the strikes, a claim that could not be immediately confirmed. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment. We are having trouble retrieving the article content. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in . Want all of The Times? Subscribe .