Iran and US Exchange Airstrikes, Fragile Ceasefire Holds
Theo Al Jazeera
Iran and the US exchanged military strikes on April 11, with the IRGC retaliating against a US base after an American airstrike near Bandar Abbas. The fragile ceasefire remains in place despite three direct engagements since its declaration, while negotiations continue amid mutual threats and economic warfare over the Strait of Hormuz.
On April 11, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced it had launched missiles at a US military base as retaliation for a previous American airstrike on an Iranian target near the Strait of Hormuz. The move comes as a fragile ceasefire faces mounting pressure and negotiations to end the conflict remain stalled.
According to Iran's state news agency IRIB, the IRGC stated: “Following this morning's aggressive act by the US army targeting a location on the outskirts of Bandar Abbas Airport with airborne missiles, the US air base — the source of the attack — was targeted at 4:50 a.m. local time.” The IRGC did not provide details on the location of the base targeted, but Kuwait's military confirmed its air defenses responded to an attack by an “enemy” the same day.
A US official speaking anonymously to Reuters said the US military shot down four Iranian attack drones and destroyed a ground control station at the port city of Bandar Abbas, which was preparing to launch a fifth drone. The official asserted, “These actions were measured, purely defensive, and aimed at maintaining the ceasefire.”
Al Jazeera correspondent Resul Serdar in Tehran reported this marks the third direct military engagement between the US and Iran since the ceasefire was declared. However, neither side has officially declared the truce collapsed.
Strait of Hormuz: International Waters
At a cabinet meeting on April 10, US President Donald Trump expressed confidence his administration was making progress in negotiations to end the war, but denied reports of a near-completed trade deal with Tehran. Trump rejected a report by Iranian state television claiming an informal draft agreement had been prepared, under which the US would restore commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month, with Iran and Oman jointly managing traffic.
Trump insisted no country had the right to control the waterway, while threatening Oman — a country with long-standing military and economic ties to the US. “Nobody controls (the strait). That’s international waters, and Oman is going to have to behave like everybody else, or we’re going to have to blow them up. They understand that, they’ll be fine,” Trump said. He also indicated he was not satisfied with the potential deal with Iran, and that the US was not discussing easing sanctions on Tehran.
Crude oil prices, which fell over 5% on April 10, recovered more than 3% following reports of escalating hostilities. Stocks declined and the US dollar strengthened.
President Trump in a bind
Ebrahim Azizi, head of Iran’s parliamentary national security commission, argued Trump’s rhetoric would not force Iran to abandon its demands on uranium enrichment, control over the Strait of Hormuz, and lifting of sanctions. Azizi wrote on social media platform X: “Obviously Trump, looking for a way out of this strategic quagmire, alternates between threats and calls for a deal.”
Iranian television’s report on a framework for a deal also stated that the US would lift the blockade on Iran’s ports and withdraw its military from areas near Iran.
Doug Bandow, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, assessed that the main war between the US and Iran is currently an economic one, with mutual blockades at the Strait of Hormuz. “Trump is in a very difficult position. He inadvertently handed Iran a powerful weapon by closing the Strait of Hormuz, and he is not willing to risk US ships to try to reopen it. It will be hard for him not to reach a deal favorable to Iran,” Bandow told Al Jazeera.
