WASHINGTON / TEHRAN, June 27 — Less than two weeks after Washington and Tehran put a 14-point ceasefire memorandum on paper, US forces and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps exchanged direct military blows around the Strait of Hormuz, raising fresh doubts over the durability of the freshly signed truce.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed on June 26 that American warplanes had struck Iran’s southern coast, targeting missile and one-way attack drone storage sites and coastal radar positions near the town of Sirik in Hormozgan province. CENTCOM said the operation was carried out in response to a drone attack the previous day on a commercial vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz, and that US forces would continue to coordinate safe passage for ships in the waterway.
According to a separate statement released by US President Donald Trump on social media, Iran launched at least four one-way attack drones toward a large cargo ship in the strait on June 25. One drone hit the upper deck of the vessel, while the remaining three were intercepted by US forces. The targeted ship, identified by industry trackers as the Singapore-flagged M/V Ever Lovely, sustained damage but remained seaworthy and continued its voyage. No casualties were reported.
Local residents near the Sirik coast reported several explosions at around 23:30 local time on June 26, according to Iranian news agency Tasnim. Eyewitnesses cited by Iranian state television said that two projectiles had struck a communications tower in the area. Iran’s defence establishment initially refrained from issuing a formal statement, an unusual departure from its typical rapid response to US strikes.
Hours later, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps acknowledged the exchange in a statement carried by Iranian state media, saying its naval forces had hit “multiple US military positions” in the region in retaliation. The statement framed the US action as a violation of the bilateral memorandum and warned that any further American strike would draw a larger response. The IRGC’s public relations office separately said that several earlier social media posts attributed to the corps regarding the clash had been fabricated.
Iranian officials echoed the message in sharper political terms. Ebrahim Azizi, who chairs the national security committee in Iran’s parliament, accused Washington of breaching both the negotiating process and the ceasefire framework, saying the US move was “reckless” and would ultimately force American forces to back down. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said Tehran’s military capability remained a guarantee of its right to self-defence and was not subject to negotiation. The IRGC also rejected reports that Iran and the United States had established a hotline over Strait of Hormuz issues, calling the claim entirely false.
From the US side, Vice President JD Vance said on social media that Tehran had signed the truce and that disagreements over how to implement the memorandum could be resolved through direct contact, but warned that any further violence by Iran would be met with force.
The ceasefire memorandum at the centre of the dispute was finalised in Switzerland on June 22, following technical-level talks at Bürgenstock the previous day. Trump had announced on June 14 that the agreement was “now complete” and authorised the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz without transit fees, alongside the lifting of a US naval blockade on Iranian ports. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council formally confirmed the understanding shortly afterwards.
Maritime data cited by S&P Global Commodity Insights showed that 78 vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on June 24, the highest single-day count since hostilities began earlier in the year, suggesting traffic had been steadily recovering before the latest incident. The International Maritime Organization said this week that around 600 vessels and 11,000 seafarers remained in waters near the strait, and that the agency had suspended an evacuation operation after the June 25 attack.
The next round of US-Iran technical talks is scheduled for June 28-29 at Bürgenstock, according to an Iranian source cited by state media. Neither side has formally pulled out of the dialogue track, but analysts say the overnight exchange has narrowed the political space on both sides to push the diplomatic process forward.
