President Trump ordered American forces to pummel Iranian military targets for a tenth consecutive night Monday, after vowing to avenge the deaths of US service members “many times over.”
“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 combatant command added.
The latest round of airstrikes were announced just hours after Trump fumed over the deaths of three US service members, who were killed during 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 wrote on Truth Social.
“This directive has been passed on to Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Daniel Caine, and every Leader in the Military,” the president added.
Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, was killed in action on Friday at the US military outpost in Jordan and 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan, 25, was killed the next day. A third US service member was killed during a “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone but has not been identified.
A total of 17 American service members have been killed since the launch of Operation Epic Fury by the US and Israel Feb. 28.
The US has repeatedly bombed Iran following the collapse of last month’s memorandum of understanding that called for a 60-day reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and continued nuclear talks.
Qatar has floated a 10-day cease-fire to de-escalate the renewed fighting, which began when Iran attacked commercial ships in the strait for following a US-preferred route rather than one closer to Iran, but Trump appears focused on making the regime pay for the deaths of US troops and repeated cease-fire violations.
“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 US official told Axios. “In addition, the President will make Iran pay for the recent deaths of US soldiers.
“These devastating blows will continue until the President deems otherwise, but talks between our countries are continuing.”
Over the weekend, CENTCOM targeted Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and communications networks “to further diminish Iran’s ability to attack commercial vessels and civilian mariners transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”
