President Trump directed U.S. forces to conduct airstrikes against Iranian military targets for the tenth consecutive night on Monday, escalating retaliatory actions following the deaths of three U.S. service members. The strikes are intended to degrade Iran's military capabilities used in attacks on commercial shipping.
"Today at 4 pm ET, US forces began a new round of strikes against Iran at the Commander in Chief’s direction," CENTCOM announced on X. "The strikes are designed to further degrade Iranian military capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz."
The latest strikes were announced hours after President Trump vowed retribution for the deaths of U.S. personnel killed in Iranian strikes on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. "Every time Iran kills an American Soldier they will pay for that killing many times over!" Trump stated on Truth Social.
Three U.S. service members were killed in the Jordan attack: Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, died Friday at the U.S. military outpost, and 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan, 25, was killed the following day. A third service member died during a controlled detonation of a downed Iranian drone and has not yet been identified. A total of 17 American service members have been killed since the commencement of Operation Epic Fury by the U.S. and Israel on February 28.
The U.S. has conducted repeated airstrikes against Iran following the collapse of a memorandum of understanding that had called for a 60-day reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and continued nuclear negotiations.
CENTCOM stated that over the weekend, targets included Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, and missile and drone launch sites. These actions aim to further diminish Iran's ability to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Qatar has proposed a 10-day ceasefire to de-escalate the renewed hostilities. However, President Trump's focus remains on holding Iran accountable for the deaths of U.S. troops and for repeated violations of the ceasefire agreement. "Right now, President Trump is focused on making Iran pay for their violations of the MOU and their continued acts of terrorism in the Strait of Hormuz," a U.S. official told Axios. "In addition, the President will make Iran pay for the recent deaths of US soldiers."