The US is reportedly planning to hit Iran’s capabilities in the Strait of Hormuz, which include attacks on Iranian fast attack boats, minelaying vessels and other assets that have helped Tehran shut down the key waterways, if ceasefire talks fail, according to reports.
Unlike the initial attacks, which were mostly against targets far from the key waterway, the new plan focuses on a more concentrated bombing campaign around the Strait of Hormuz, according to CNN. The options include strikes on the targets that Iran uses to shut down the key waterway around the Strait of Hormuz, the southern Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
As per reports, Iran’s coastal defence missiles and other assets, including small boats that are being used as platforms to launch attacks on ships, remain intact. The US military could also strike infrastructure targets, including energy facilities, in an effort to compel Iran to the negotiating table, the sources told CNN.
Another option being considered includes targeting individual Iranian military leaders and other “obstructionists” within the regime who US officials have recently suggested are actively undermining negotiations, the report added and cited Ahmad Vahidi, who serves as Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as one such individual.
Other targets would include Iran’s remaining military capabilities, including missiles, launchers and production facilities that were not destroyed in the initial wave of US-Israeli attacks. The assessment is that roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers and thousands of one-way attack drones are still intact.
The report also quoted a Defence Department official who said they do not discuss future or hypothetical movements due to operational security.” “The U.S. military continues to provide the President options, and all options remain on the table,” he added.
This comes as the US bolsters its military muscle in the Middle Eastern waters. CENTCOM has already announced that the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H W Bush (CVN-77), the biggest aircraft carrier, is currently in the Indian Ocean within the US Central Command area of responsibility.
