1st LD: U.S. forces strike Iran's missile sites, mine-laying boats -- central command

WASHINGTON, May 25 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. military struck missile launch sites and mine-laying boats in southern Iran on Monday, the U.S. Central Command said.

"U.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces," Tim Hawkins, spokesperson for the command, said in a statement.

"Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines. U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire," he said.

The strikes were carried out in the Bandar Abbas area which hosts Iran's main naval base, destroying two vessels of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps and hitting a surface-to-air missile site, said Hawkins.

Four people were killed in the attack, while the total number of casualties remained unclear, Fars News Agency reported, citing Iranian state television.

Fox News reported that two Iranian boats were spotted laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, and a missile site targeted U.S. warplanes. As a response, U.S. forces struck back.

The U.S. strikes were "over for now," said the report, citing a senior U.S. official on Monday.

The strikes do not indicate the weeks-long U.S. ceasefire with Iran is over, two sources were quoted as saying. Enditem