US strikes Iran missile sites and mine laying vessels as Trump’s promised peace deal remains elusive

The US has launched strikes on southern Iran in a test of the seven-week long ceasefire, as both sides played down hopes for an imminent peace deal even as negotiators from Tehran began new talks in Qatar. US forces targeted missile launch sites and boats attempting to lay mines, US central command (Centcom) said on Tuesday, but stressed that the strikes did not indicate the ceasefire with Iran was over. Centcom “continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire”, said navy captain Tim Hawkins, who characterised the action as “defensive”. In Iran, the news website Tabnak, believed to be close to former Revolutionary Guard chief Mohsen Rezaei, identified four dead Guard troops it said had been killed in American strikes on boats. Iranian state television separately reported blasts around Bandar Abbas, a city on the Strait of Hormuz home to a military port and a dual-use airport. The Iranian state news agency Mehr later said the situation was “completely under control” and there was no reason for residents to worry. The strikes – the second major attacks to take place during the seven-week ceasefire – came as Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, led a delegation of negotiators to Qatar. Local media said Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, and central bank governor, Abdolnaser Hemmati, were among the group as well. Hemmati’s presence has fuelled speculation that talks will focus on the release of frozen Iranian assets. …