The United States on Sunday carried out a second night of airstrikes against Iranian targets as their dispute over transit rights in the Strait of Hormuz threatened to escalate beyond the region. U.S. Navy file photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Zoe Simpson
The U.S. military said Sunday it is carrying out a second consecutive night of airstrikes against Iranian targets as world leaders raised fears that a fragile cease-fire would collapse and the conflict could widen beyond the region.
The U.S. Central Command said in a statement its forces “began launching more strikes against Iran to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
“The Commander in Chief has directed the strikes to hold Iranian forces accountable.”
The new wave of strikes came hours after the U.S. military refuted Iran’s claims it had closed the vital waterway in response to what it characterized as violations of the 25-day-old U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding which established the shaky cease-fire.
“The Strait of Hormuz is open to all vessels seeking to lawfully transit the international waterway,” CENTCOM declared. “U.S. forces are positioned and prepared to ensure that freedom of navigation remains available despite unwarranted Iranian aggression, harassment, threats, and arbitrary declarations. Iran does not control the strait.
“Traffic is flowing.”
Late on Sunday, Iranian media reported explosions near Sirik and west of Bandar Abbas in the country’s south in the second night of U.S. strikes, which came shortly after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted what it called American military assets in Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.
Those attacks drew condemnation from the Gulf states and warnings from world leaders that events were spiraling quickly.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said it is “following with deep concern the recent incidents that are further escalating the regional tensions.”
Islamabad, which mediated the Memorandum of Understand, “reiterates its strong support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all brotherly countries in the region, and urges all sides to exercise restraint, take immediate steps towards de-escalation, and uphold respective commitments under the [MoU].”
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres on Sunday similarly expressed “deep concerns” over what he called “serious escalation & renewed military confrontations in the Gulf, including the Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the attacks by the U.S. on Iran, and the attacks by Iran on targets in the neighboring countries.
“These attacks must all stop,” he said, warning that “a return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences — for the peoples of the region, for international peace & security & for the global economy.
“I urge Iran & the U.S. to urgently resume negotiations & to address outstanding issues through diplomacy,” Guterres said.
Iranians rally in Tehran with missile display
A missile identified as “Khorramshahr-4” was on display during a public rally in Tehran’s Enghelab Square on April 21, 2026. Photo by Behnam Tofighi/UPI | License Photo
