“Those strikes that will happen tonight will be strong and clear, and if they have to happen tomorrow night they will be strong and clear,” Hegseth asserted, adding that US CENTCOM will be “busy.”
Two US Air Force F-35A stealth fighter jets fly over the Middle East during a patrol in a photo shared by US Central Command on June 7, 2026.(photo credit: SCREENSHOT X/ @CENTCOM)
ByGOLDIE KATZ, JERUSALEM POST STAFF
JUNE 11, 2026 00:40Updated: JUNE 11, 2026 08:13
US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it launched “self-defense strikes” against multiple targets in Iran at the direction of US President Donald Trump in a post on X/Twitter on Wednesday.
According to Iranian state media reports, after the strikes were announced, explosions were heard in western Tehran and the southern Iranian cities of Sirik and Minab.
CENTCOM stated that it targeted Iranian military surveillance capabilities, communications systems, and air defense sites across Iran with precision munitions. The sites targeted posed a threat to US forces in the region and commercial ships attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz, according to the US military.
“The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression,” CENTCOM asserted, adding that “US forces remain vigilant, lethal, and ready.”
Iran claims Strait of Hormuz closed in response to strikes
According to Reuters, Iran’s top joint military command announced that the Strait would be closed in response to the strikes and that any vessel attempting transit through the waterway will be shot at.
Iranian state media then claimed that two “violating ships” were hit by Iran’s navy.
CENTCOM denied that the Strait of Hormuz has been closed, asserting that “commercial ships are continuing to transit in and out of the Strait” in a post on X/Twitter.
US to ‘hit Iran hard,’ Hegseth warns
The strikes were announced shortly after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, during a security cabinet meeting with Trump, stated that the US was “going to hit Iran hard” on Wednesday, according to an Axios report.
“Those strikes that will happen tonight will be strong and clear and if they have to happen tomorrow night, they will be strong and clear,” Hegseth asserted, adding that CENTCOM will be “busy tonight.”
Hegseth clarified that the strikes on “key facilities” in Iran would be intended to “set the terms for a deal” rather than to restart the war.
He stated that Trump is prepared to make a deal and that “Iran would be wise to take it.”
“If we need to negotiate with bombs, we will negotiate with bombs,” Hegseth added.
Second consecutive night of CENTCOM strikes
CENTCOM conducted similar strikes against Iran on Tuesday after a US Army Apache Helicopter was downed near the Strait of Hormuz.
In Tuesday’s strikes, the US targeted Iranian air defenses, ground control stations, and radar sites with precise munitions, according to a CENTCOM statement at the time.
Reuters and Danya Saperstein contributed to this report.
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