Haig-Smith threatens Tehran with a military response “10 times more severe”
The United States intensified its strikes on the Iranian military belt overlooking the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman during the tenth night of continuous raids, as part of a campaign aimed at “undermining Iran’s ability to continue attacking commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” while Tehran persisted in its attacks on regional states and threatened even more severe strikes.
In the context of diplomatic efforts to salvage the collapsed interim agreement between Washington and Tehran, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni began a series of meetings with mediators in Pakistan, which called on all parties to exercise restraint and avoid any steps that could destabilize the region.
In Washington, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth threatened Iran with a military response “ten times stronger, day after day and night after night,” if it continued its attacks on commercial vessels and regional states.
Speaking at a press conference at the White House on the sidelines of a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Lebanese counterpart Joseph Aoun, Hegseth said Iran had “missed every opportunity for communication and dialogue,” adding that Trump had multiple options to deal with the escalation. “If they want to talk, they can talk; otherwise, they will face the U.S. Department of Defense,” he said, while noting that Iran possessed “a large quantity of weapons,” which constituted a threat requiring a firm stance.
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated in a statement that the tenth round of strikes lasted about five hours and targeted “Iranian military command centers, naval capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and air defense systems.”
It announced at dawn after the round ended that U.S. forces remained on high alert and prepared to hold Iran accountable for the “unjustified aggression” against civilian sailors attempting to cross the strait.
In Tehran, state media reported explosions in the provinces of Hormozgan, Fars, Kerman, and Baluchestan in the south, and Ilam in the west. Reports also mentioned the sound of explosions near the cities of Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Chabahar, and Kinarak, as well as in the mountainous areas surrounding Shiraz.
The distribution of locations where explosions were heard indicated that the U.S. round primarily focused on the southern and southeastern provinces, stretching from areas near the Strait of Hormuz to the coast of the Gulf of Oman, with reports of strikes in deeper inland sites.
The previous night, U.S. raids had extended to other areas, including Ahvaz (southwest) and Tabriz (northwest), but the new operations refocused attention on the southern coast and capabilities that Washington believes are used to target ships in the strait.
In response to the U.S. raids, Iranian forces targeted Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan, which announced it had shot down three Iranian missiles and five drones.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned in a statement published by the IRNA news agency of more powerful missile and drone attacks.
Early on Tuesday, a tanker was attacked off the Omani coast, forcing its crew to abandon ship.
Nevertheless, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei confirmed that diplomatic efforts were still ongoing through mediating countries.
Sharif, during his meeting with the Iranian Interior Minister, expressed concern over the recent escalation in the Gulf region, affirming that his country would continue its mediation efforts and facilitate dialogue, based on its firm commitment to supporting regional peace and stability.
For his part, Momeni praised Sharif’s efforts, as well as those of Foreign Minister Eshaq Dar and Army Chief General Asim Munir, in the mediation that led to the Islamabad understanding.
US Department of Defense spokesperson Sean Barnell said that approximately 100 members of the US armed forces have been injured since Washington resumed strikes on Iran on July 7, noting that 96 percent of them have returned to duty. He added that the vast majority of the injuries were mild concussions. Barnell denied claims in a New York Times report that casualty data had been concealed. However, the Defense Casualty Analysis System Fields, the military registry responsible for reporting deaths and injuries in conflicts, had not been updated as of Monday evening to include the recent attacks. The number of US military fatalities since the war began on February 28 has risen to 17.
