Strait Filled with Drones and Missiles Again; Oil Tankers Struck

[Anchor]

As the United States intensifies its economic pressure, military clashes between the two countries are also escalating. The U.S. has conducted nighttime airstrikes against Iran for three consecutive days, and Iran has responded in kind by attacking neighboring countries and merchant vessels.

Reporter Yu Deok-gi has the story.

[Reporter]

A vessel approaches a port facility and explodes on impact.

The U.S. Central Command stated that the U.S. military deployed its unmanned maritime drone, Corsair, in combat for the first time to strike Iran's Bandar Abbas naval facility.

For three consecutive nights, the U.S. military has also carried out airstrikes against coastal defense systems and missile and drone bases in the area of the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran.

The U.S. military stated that the reason for the airstrikes was to weaken the Iranian military's capability to attack civilian merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

These strikes were carried out after President Trump warned of high-intensity attacks against Iran.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President (U.S. radio 'The Hugh Hewitt Show') : Tonight, we are going to push them (Iran) very hard. And tomorrow, we will push them hard again, and (Iran) will not be able to do anything.]

Iran retaliated by attacking more merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

On July 14 (local time), two United Arab Emirates-flagged oil tankers were struck by Iranian missiles in a shipping lane south of the Strait of Hormuz, causing fires on the ships, killing one Indian crew member, and injuring eight others.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations also received reports that two other oil tankers were struck in the waters off Oman.

Iran claimed that the damaged vessels were struck while attempting to pass through unauthorized routes due to U.S. incitement.

[Ebrahim Zolfaghari / Spokesperson for Iran's Central Military Headquarters : We will not allow the U.S. to interfere in the management of the Strait of Hormuz under any circumstances, and we will not allow it in the future.]

Iran also continued retaliatory airstrikes targeting U.S. military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, and other locations.

As the power struggle over control of the Strait of Hormuz turns into a direct confrontation, concerns are growing that peace negotiations may collapse and full-scale war could resume.

(Video Editing: Jung Seong-hun, Design: Park Tae-young)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.