U.S. forces struck missile launch sites and Iranian vessels attempting to lay naval mines in southern Iran on Sunday, U.S. Central Command said, marking a fresh military exchange despite an ongoing ceasefire between Washington and Tehran and advanced talks to end the war.

Capt. Tim Hawkins, a CENTCOM spokesperson, told Fox News that the strikes were carried out in self-defense to protect American personnel in the region.

“U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Hawkins said. “Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines. U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”

The spokesman did not disclose the number of targets struck, the platforms used or whether any Iranian personnel were killed.

CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper told the Senate Armed Services Committee last week that the campaign had degraded Iran’s defense industrial base by roughly 90 percent and eliminated more than 90 percent of Tehran’s stockpile of 8,000 naval mines. Cooper said Iran retained what he described as “nuisance capability,” including harassment by small boats and low-end drone and rocket attacks.

Sunday’s strikes appear to fall within that residual threat picture. Iranian fast boats and mine-laying vessels have long been a CENTCOM concern in the Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf, where roughly 20 percent of global oil shipments transit.
Iranian officials did not immediately respond to the reported strikes.

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