U.S. forces launched self-defense strikes in southern Iran on Monday targeting missile launch sites and boats attempting to emplace mines near the key naval base at Bandar Abbas, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command.
"U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces," CENTCOM spokesperson Capt. Tim 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." A U.S. official described the scope of the strikes as "very small."
The action comes amid a two-week ceasefire that followed President Donald Trump's Feb. 28 announcement of "major combat operations" against Iran involving joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on military, government and infrastructure sites. Seven service members died in the opening wave of Iranian retaliatory attacks, and six Air Force airmen were killed when a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq.
President Trump honored those 13 service members during Memorial Day remarks at Arlington National Cemetery. "In Operation Epic Fury, we lost 13 wonderful souls, wonderful special people," he said. "These incredible men and women gave their lives to ensure that the world's number one state sponsor of terror will never have a nuclear weapon."
Negotiations for a broader agreement remain ongoing. Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the potential deal as a "work in progress" while traveling in India, noting that the U.S. and Iran are focused on opening the Strait of Hormuz and addressing Iran's nuclear program. "We have what I think is a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the straits, get the straits open, enter into a very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matters, and hopefully we can pull it off," Rubio said.
Rubio also addressed Iran's "tolling system" in the strait, calling it "unlawful" and "unsustainable for the world." He added that no other country supports the arrangement. "The Russians are not in favor of a tolling system. The Chinese are not in favor of a tolling system," Rubio said during a gaggle with reporters.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters in Tehran that the two sides have "reached a conclusion on a large part of the issues under discussion," but cautioned that finalization is not imminent. "No one can say that the finalization of a deal is imminent," Baghaei said, noting frequent changes in U.S. positions. He added that details on managing the Strait of Hormuz remain undecided and that a ceasefire covering all fronts, including Lebanon, is part of the draft agreement.
Trump has said his preference is for Iran's enriched uranium to be destroyed "in place" or at "another acceptable location" under IAEA oversight rather than being shipped to the United States. "The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place," Trump posted on social media.
The president has repeatedly described the emerging agreement as "the exact opposite" of the 2015 JCPOA negotiated under former President Barack Obama. "The deal with Iran will either be a great and meaningful one, or there will be no deal," Trump wrote. "It will be the exact opposite of the JCPOA disaster negotiated by the failed Obama Administration."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel would "intensify" strikes in Lebanon against Hezbollah targets. "We are not taking our foot off the gas. On the contrary, I have instructed them to press the pedal even harder," Netanyahu said in a video message. The Israel Defense Forces reported striking more than 70 Hezbollah infrastructure sites across Lebanon that day.
Rubio noted that talks on Lebanon are proceeding separately from the Iran negotiations. "Lebanon, we're working on separately," he said. "The problem is not Lebanon and Israel; the problem is Hezbollah."
A senior administration official said Sunday that the U.S. and Iran are making progress on an interim agreement that would include an immediate opening of the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for lifting the U.S. naval blockade, along with a broad commitment from Iran to negotiate removal of its enriched uranium stockpile. "Even if we get this language in a good place, it is going to take days for it to filter through their system and get an approval," the official said.
Trump has warned that the U.S. blockade will remain in place until any agreement is certified and signed. "There is no rush to make a peace deal," he posted. Iranian officials have not yet publicly confirmed agreement on the latest proposals.