US and Iran trade strikes, peace pact at risk

The United States and Iran exchanged military strikes early Wednesday, July 8, threatening to unravel a fragile peace agreement between the two nations and raising fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East. The U.S. military said it launched powerful strikes on over 80 targets in southern Iran, including air defense systems, command networks, and Revolutionary Guard Corps boats, in retaliation for what it called Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz hours earlier.

U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking at a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, cast doubt on the future of the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran on June 17. He said he believed the agreement was over and called continued negotiations a waste of time, though he suggested U.S. negotiators might continue talks. His remarks sent global oil prices sharply higher and rattled financial markets.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it responded by launching strikes on 85 U.S. military targets in Bahrain and Kuwait, with sirens reported in both countries. Iranian state media reported explosions in the southern port cities of Sirik and Bandar Abbas, as well as on Qeshm Island in...