OAN Staff Addie Davis
10:53 AM – Sunday, July 12, 2026
United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it completed a third round of strikes on Iran this week, denying Iranian claims that the Strait of Hormuz is closed.
The command said they hit about 140 targets on Sunday, bringing the tally to over 300 this week as hostilities have reignited in the region.
“U.S. forces hit approximately 140 Iranian military targets with precision munitions launched by land- and sea-based fighter aircraft, drones, and naval vessels,” CENTCOM said.
Sites that were struck included weapons, communication and surveillance locations.
“Targets included Iranian missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, ammunition storage facilities, communication networks, and coastal surveillance locations,” the command went on.
Saturday’s strikes marked the third night of attacks this week as President Donald Trump declared on Friday that the “Ceasefire is OVER.” However, he said then that the U.S. had agreed to continue talks at Iran’s request.
CENTCOM asserted that Saturday’s military operations followed the Iranian attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the Strait of Hormuz. They maintained that that the vessel is unable to continue transiting and one crew member remains missing following the strike.
“At 7:15 p.m. ET today, U.S. Central Command forces began launching the third round of strikes this week against Iran after Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces blatantly attacked M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged container ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” the command posted to social media on Saturday.
“A civilian crew member is missing and the vessel is unable to continue the journey due to an onboard fire and significant engineroom damage,” it continued.
Earlier in the week, CENTCOM announced that Iran had fired upon three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting retaliatory strikes from the U.S.
“Iran was provided yet another opportunity to demonstrate adherence to the Memorandum of Understanding after being held accountable for earlier attacks on commercial vessels but has again failed,” the command said on Saturday.
“In response, the United States is imposing a heavy cost by continuing to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the strait,” it continued. “The strikes are being carried out at the direction of the Commander in Chief.”
Iran responded by launching strikes at multiple Gulf nations and declared that the strait was closed, per media reports.
However, CENTCOM denied the closure of the waterway, stating that “Iran does not control the strait.”
“U.S. forces are positioned and prepared to ensure that freedom of navigation remains available despite unwarranted Iranian aggression, harassment, threats, and arbitrary declarations,” it said in a Sunday post. “Traffic is flowing.”
It further addressed the assertion in a subsequent post:
“CLAIM: The Iranian commander for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Navy recently said on state-owned media that no foreign vessels may pass through the Strait of Hormuz without being identified, tracked, and monitored by Iranian forces.
FACT: Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. It remains an international waterway. U.S. forces are positioned and prepared to keep it that way.”
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