U.S. President Donald Trump has declared that Iran “will cease to exist” if the United States decides to resume the war against the country, accusing Tehran of violating the current ceasefire agreement.
“U.S. aircraft have just struck Iranian missile and drone warehouses, as well as coastal radar stations, for violating, ONCE AGAIN, the ceasefire agreement!” Trump wrote on Saturday on his social media platform, Truth Social.
“It is highly likely they will never learn! The time may come when we can no longer act rationally and will be forced to conclude by military force the mission we started so well. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will cease to exist!” he added.
The U.S. struck “multiple targets” inside Iran on Saturday in response to an attack on a commercial vessel near the Strait of Hormuz.
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According to the U.S. Central Command (Centcom), which oversees military operations in the Middle East, American forces carried out airstrikes against “Iranian military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense facilities, drone storage facilities, and minelaying equipment.”
Centcom stated that “commercial maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz continues” despite the fresh round of airstrikes.
Meanwhile, Iranian media outlets reported several explosions across the southern regions of Sirik and Qeshm.
These military actions came after Iran targeted the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Kiku with a one-way attack drone in the Strait of Hormuz. The tanker was transporting more than two million barrels of crude oil.
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According to specialized maritime tracking portals, the Kiku departed from a Qatari oil field in the middle of the Persian Gulf earlier in the week and was bound for a port in the United Arab Emirates located in the Gulf of Oman, on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz.
The vessel was reportedly attempting to use an established route close to the Omani coast as an alternative to the shipping lanes passing directly through Iranian waters.
On Friday, the U.S. had already struck Iranian “missile and drone storage sites” and “coastal radar locations” after Tehran targeted another commercial ship transiting the strategic waterway.
This exchange of offensives is occurring despite an agreement reached between Tehran and Washington to reopen the crucial shipping lane as part of a preliminary peace memorandum signed on June 17, which established a ceasefire and initiated a negotiating window for a lasting peace.
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Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, 20% of the world’s hydrocarbon trade passed through the Strait of Hormuz, which spans roughly 30 kilometers wide between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.
This strategic chokepoint remains a major point of contention between both sides, as Tehran is now attempting to impose transit fees—a proposal categorically rejected by Washington.
