US strikes IRGC rocket launchers on Iran's Larak Island in first attack in weeks

US forces struck two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps rocket launchers on Larak Island in southern Iran on Sunday morning, after intelligence indicated IRGC personnel were preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM called it 'limited, precise action' to prevent minelaying and denied it was an act of aggression. Iranian state media reported at least two to three people killed and several wounded in the strike.

Why this matters. The strike, the first direct US action against Iran in weeks, shows Washington is still willing to preempt Iranian minelaying near Hormuz even amid diplomacy over reopening the strait, raising the risk of a fresh retaliatory cycle.