ISTANBUL, Sept 2 — The United States and Iran traded strikes after US forces attacked Iranian military targets, with Tehran saying it had launched retaliatory missile and drone strikes against American bases in the region.

The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said American forces had completed a wave of strikes against targets linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including air defence sites, radar systems, maritime assets, mine-laying capabilities and communications facilities, according to reports by Bernama-Xinhua.

“US forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets including air defence sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine laying capabilities, and communications site,” Centcom said in a post on X.

It said the strikes followed “recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members”.

“More than 50,000 US service members are currently operating across the Middle East and remain vigilant, lethal, and prepared to continue executing operations directed by the Commander in Chief,” it added.

The IRGC said its retaliatory strikes had begun against US bases and assets in the region, including Camp Titin in Jordan and Shaikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain, claiming that a large number of US troops were killed and key facilities and combat helicopters destroyed.

The claims could not be independently verified, while Jordan’s armed forces said its air defences intercepted 10 of 13 ballistic missiles that entered its airspace from Iran, with the remaining three falling in remote areas and causing no casualties.

Iranian media reported explosions in several southern provinces following the US strikes, including in Sirik, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm and Jask in Hormozgan, as well as Konarak, Chabahar, Jiroft and Asaluyeh.

Iran’s main military command, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said the armed forces would respond to the US “air aggression” with what it described as “crushing and shattering” blows.

Iranian officials said at least five people, including a four-year-old child and a woman, were killed and more than 50 others wounded in a US strike on a wedding ceremony in Sirik County, although the circumstances of the incident could not be independently verified.

The IRGC also said its air defence had shot down a “hostile” US MQ-9 Reaper drone and warned that the US strikes would prolong the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Centcom had earlier announced that US forces had launched attacks against IRGC targets in Iran, while the escalation comes amid heightened tensions over the strategically vital waterway.