US Strikes Iran Third Night — Trump Ends Ceasefire, Blockade
- Jul 13
- 3 min read
US strikes on Iran entered a third consecutive night Monday as President Donald Trump declared the two-month ceasefire between Washington and Tehran officially over, escalating a confrontation that has shifted from tit-for-tat retaliation into an open struggle for control of the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command confirmed it launched a fresh round of strikes at 11:45 p.m., hours after Trump warned Iran in an interview that the United States would "hit you hard" either that night or the following day.
The renewed campaign marks the collapse of the memorandum of understanding Trump signed with Iran last month, an agreement that was billed at the time as a permanent end to the war that erupted earlier this year. On Monday the president dismissed the memorandum as little more than a "test," saying it did not mean very much because the United States was dealing with counterparts who, in his words, did not adhere to its terms.
Trump also moved to tighten the economic vise on Tehran, announcing the reinstatement of the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz beginning Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern time. In an unusual addition, he demanded that the United States be "reimbursed" 20 percent on all cargo shipped through the waterway, a levy that stunned shipping analysts and rattled energy markets already on edge after weeks of disruption in the Gulf.
The most ominous new element is Trump’s direct threat against Pickaxe Mountain, the deeply buried nuclear facility Iran has constructed near its Natanz enrichment complex. "We will destroy Pickaxe Mountain," Trump said, referencing a site that military planners have long considered one of the hardest targets on earth, tunneled so far beneath rock that even the largest US bunker-buster munitions may struggle to reach it.
Sunday and Monday’s waves of strikes reportedly hit more than 90 coastal targets, including missile batteries, radar installations and naval facilities that Washington says have been used to threaten shipping. Iranian state media reported casualties in a US strike in southwestern Iran, saying one person was killed and four wounded. Tehran continues to insist the Strait of Hormuz is closed and that it alone controls access to the corridor.
US Central Command has pushed back forcefully on that claim, saying the waterway remains open and describing it as vital to global trade. The dueling declarations have left tanker operators, insurers and energy traders navigating an unprecedented situation in which the world’s most important oil chokepoint is claimed as closed by one power and open by another, with both backing their positions with military force.
The strikes follow a violent stretch in which Iran launched missile attacks on US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, and Gulf states scrambled to intercept Iranian missiles fired in response to earlier American strikes on targets across Iran. Each round of escalation has widened the circle of countries drawn into the confrontation, deepening fears of a regional war that neither side claims to want.
Under the War Powers Act, Trump formally notified Congress of the renewed strikes, starting a 60-day clock on the operation. The notification has reignited debate on Capitol Hill over the legal basis for sustained hostilities against Iran without a formal authorization for the use of military force, with some lawmakers demanding a vote and others backing the administration’s argument that protecting Hormuz shipping is a core national security interest.
Oil prices jumped again Monday as the blockade announcement and the third night of strikes fed fears of a prolonged disruption to Gulf exports. Analysts warned that a sustained closure of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil passes, would ripple through fuel prices, shipping costs and inflation data worldwide, complicating central bank decisions already strained by sticky price growth.
Diplomatically, the picture remains murky. Trump has said talks with Tehran will continue even as the ceasefire lapses, and intermediaries in the region are reportedly working to restore some framework for de-escalation. But with the president publicly vowing to destroy Iran’s most fortified nuclear site and Iran refusing to reopen the strait, the space for a negotiated off-ramp appears to be narrowing by the day.
What happens next may turn on Tuesday’s blockade deadline. If US warships begin enforcing the reinstated blockade and the 20 percent cargo levy, Iran will face a choice between backing down from its closure claim or directly challenging the US Navy at sea. Either path carries enormous risk, and the world’s energy markets, shipping lanes and capitals will be watching the Gulf hour by hour.
The takeaway: the US-Iran ceasefire is dead, the fight is now explicitly about who controls the Strait of Hormuz, and Trump has put Iran’s most hardened nuclear site on the target list. This is the most dangerous phase of the conflict yet, and the next 48 hours could determine whether it tips into a full regional war.
Comments