Marines board tanker amid blockade of Iranian ports as US expands strikes with attacks on bridges

After the interim ceasefire collapsed, the Middle East has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the US and Iran as they battle for control of the strait of Hormuz. Photograph: U.S. Central Command/X View image in fullscreen After the interim ceasefire collapsed, the Middle East has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the US and Iran as they battle for control of the strait of Hormuz. Photograph: U.S. Central Command/X Marines board tanker amid blockade of Iranian ports as US expands strikes with attacks on bridges Boarding of M/T Wen Yao in Gulf of Oman comes as expanded airstrike campaign hits five bridges in southern Iran American forces boarded a ship in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday as part of the renewed blockade of Iran’s ports that began earlier this week, the US military said. US Marines boarded the M/T Wen Yao “to ensure full compliance with the ongoing US naval blockade,” US Central Command (Centcom) said in a post on X. Centcom also said it had “redirected” three commercial vessels “trying to run the blockade” since it took effect at 8pm GMT on Tuesday. The previous day, a US aircraft fired on and disabled an unladen oil tanker that tried to break the blockade. US gas prices edge up again as US-Iran tensions heighten over strait of Hormuz Read more The boarding of the vessel came as the US expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran with attacks on multiple bridges, in line with Donald Trump’s threats to destroy infrastructure, prompting Tehran to fire on Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait. The Gulf countries, which host US forces, have faced repeated attacks in recent days after the interim deal to try to end the Iran war collapsed. In a primetime address to the US on Thursday night, Trump claimed the US was “winning big in Iran”, and that Americans “will see the fruits of that labour very, very shortly”. Iranian state media said US strikes on Thursday hit targets around Tehran and Semnan province, home to Iran’s ballistic missile production and space program. State media also reported strikes around the provinces of Hamedan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan, Lorestan, Markazi, and Sistan and Balochistan, as well as on Iran’s Qeshm island, near the strait of Hormuz. Seven people were wounded in a US strike that hit the Allah-Akbar Hill residential neighbourhood in the port city of Bandar Abbas, according to Iranian state media. Two others were wounded in a US attack on Bandar Abbas railway junction station, state media said. Just west of Bandar Abbas, witnesses reported two bridges were struck in a US attack, killing three and wounding nine others, state media said. Early on Friday, Kuwait said it was responding to missile and drone attacks, a day after it faced earlier aerial attacks from Iran. Agence France-Presse journalists in Doha reported hearing several blasts early on Friday, as officials in the Qatari capital warned the security threat level was “elevated”. In Bahrain, the interior ministry urged citizens to take shelter. Iranian state