Map highlighting Bandar Abbas in Iran, located near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, crucial for maritime trade routes.

The U.S. military has executed targeted self-defense strikes in southern Iran to protect our troops from escalating threats by the Iranian regime’s terrorist proxies and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed the operation Monday night, hitting two IRGC boats mining the critical Strait of Hormuz and a surface-to-air missile site in Bandar Abbas.

According to CENTCOM spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins, the strikes were carried out “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces” while officials insisted the U.S. was still exercising restraint amid the fragile ceasefire environment.

“Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines. U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” Hawkins added.

FOX News reported:

According to a senior U.S. official, two Iranian boats were spotted laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, while forces also responded after a missile site had targeted U.S. warplanes.

The U.S. military eliminated both IRGC vessels and also struck the SAM, or surface-to-air missile, site in Bandar Abbas.

“These were defensive strikes,” the official told Fox News. The strikes do not indicate the ceasefire with Iran is over, two additional sources said.

This came after explosions were heard Monday in various regions across the Strait of Hormuz, with one explosion heard in Iran’s Bandar Abbas in the country’s south.

Other explosions were reported close to Sirik and Jask near the strategic waterway. The official confirmed Monday that the U.S. strikes were “over for now.”

WATCH:

President Trump had signaled earlier Monday that diplomatic talks with Iran were still progressing, but Tehran appears to have been playing a dangerous game, testing the limits while American negotiators pursued a potential agreement.

Trump wrote on Monday:

Negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran are proceeding nicely! It will only be a Great Deal for all or, no Deal at all — Back to the Battlefront and shooting, but bigger and stronger than ever before — And nobody wants that! During my discussions on Saturday with President Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, of The United Arab Emirates, Emir Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, and Minister Ali al-Thawadi, of Qatar, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir Ahmed Shah, of Pakistan, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, of Türkiye, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, of Egypt, King Abdullah II, of Jordan, and King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, of Bahrain, I stated that, after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together,  it should be mandatory that all of these Countries, at a minimum, simultaneously, sign onto the Abraham Accords.

Those Countries discussed are Saudi Arabia, The United Arab Emirates (already a Member!), Qatar, Pakistan, Türkiye, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain (already a Member!). It may be possible that one or two have a reason for not doing so, and that will be accepted, but most should be ready, willing, and able to make this Settlement with Iran a far more Historic Event than it would, otherwise, be.

The Abraham Accords have proven to be, for the Countries involved (The United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and Kazakhstan), a Financial, Economic, and Social BOOM, even during this time of Conflict and War, with the current Members never even suggesting leaving, or taking so much as even a pause.

The reason for this is that the Abraham Accords have been great for them, and will be even better for everybody, and bring true Power, Strength, and Peace to the Middle East for the first time in 5,000 years.

It will be a Document respected like no other that has ever been signed, anywhere in the World. Its level of Importance and Prestige will be unparalleled! It should start with the immediate signing by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and everybody else should follow suit. If they don’t, they should not be part of this Deal in that it shows bad intention. In speaking to numerous of the Great Leaders mentioned above, they would be honored, as soon as our Document is signed, to have the Islamic Republic of Iran as part of the Abraham Accords.

Wow, now that would be something special! This will be the most important Deal that any of these Great, but always in Conflict Countries, will ever sign. Nothing in the past, or in the future, will surpass it. Therefore, I am mandatorily requesting that all Countries immediately sign the Abraham Accords, and that, if Iran signs its Agreement with me, as President of the United States of America, it would be an Honor to have them also be part of this unparalleled World Coalition.

The Middle East would be United, Powerful, and Economically Strong, like perhaps no other area, anywhere in the World! By copy of this TRUTH, I am asking my Representatives to begin, and successfully complete, the process of signing these Countries into the already Historic Abraham Accords.

The post U.S. Military Launches Precision “Self-Defense Strikes” in Southern Iran – Neutralizing IRGC Threats to American Troops After Radical Regime’s Latest Provocations appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.