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2w ago

U.S. Carries Out Seventh Night of Strikes and Reimposes Naval Blockade on Iran

U.S. attacks have degraded Iranian maritime surveillance and raised the risk of a wider regional war by sharply restricting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

People walk around Tehran's traditional main bazaar, Iran, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
QESHM ISLAND, IRAN - MAY 17: Food vendors sit below posters of the former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the current Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on May 17, 2026 along the Strait of Hormuz in, on Qeshm Island, Iran. Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over opening this critical waterway have largely stalled as the countries have rejected each other's proposals to end the war that began when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. (Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
STRAIT OF HORMUZ, IRAN - MAY 16: A ship that his struck earlier in the war remains anchored on May 16, 2026 in the Strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran. Negotiations between the U.S. and Iran over opening this critical waterway have largely stalled as the countries have rejected each other's proposals to end the war that began when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. (Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
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Overview

  • U.S. Central Command confirmed late Friday that American forces launched a seventh consecutive day of strikes aimed at degrading Iranian military capabilities and that they destroyed a surveillance tower at Chabahar port.
  • Iran responded with missile and drone strikes against Gulf allies, including Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain, and Kuwaiti officials said a power and desalination plant was hit, threatening drinking water supplies.
  • U.S. forces have reimposed and are enforcing a naval blockade by redirecting, boarding and disabling vessels, and commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to only a handful of daily crossings.
  • Iranian state sources report dozens killed and hundreds wounded in recent strikes, while U.S. military statements acknowledge additional service-member injuries this week and list overall U.S. casualties since the war began.
  • Mediators in Qatar, Pakistan and Oman remain engaged but talks to restore the June interim truce are stalled, leaving a diplomatic path unclear and increasing the chance the fighting will spread to other maritime chokepoints and more civilian infrastructure.