The United States has hit Qeshm Island in southern Iran in what US President Donald Trump called a “minor strike” on Saturday.
Iran’s semi-official Tasnim News Agency said earlier that initial reports indicated that two missiles had struck Qeshm Island, adding that there was no official information on possible damage.
When asked about reports that the US was responsible for the strikes on Qeshm Island, Trump told reporters, “We do minor strikes. They built a little bit of an anti-aircraft device, and we knocked it out in about 15 minutes.”
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) spokesman Hussein Moghadi addressed the strikes on Qeshm Island, saying that Iranian forces carried out defensive operations in which a US aircraft was hit.
Moghadi did not provide further details on the incident, but said that Iran was prepared to use “new capabilities” to strike enemy positions in the region.
“Our war is not symmetrical, and we can strike the enemy at a point where he does not expect it,” the spokesman said.
Ongoing US-Iran negotiations
Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said the country’s mediation efforts between the US and Iran were continuing to prevent the situation in the region from spiraling out of control, according to the Al Jazeera Media Network.
On Saturday, Qatar’s International Media Office denied circulating reports that the US and Iran had failed to reach an agreement to end the war, describing these allegations as false and misleading.
It said the Qatari prime minister had affirmed that both sides continue to work toward an agreement.
The statement added that Qatar’s mediation efforts were ongoing, in close coordination with Washington and Tehran, to support the negotiations.
Hours after the reported explosions, Iran’s state media outlets reported that it had shot down a US MQ-9 drone over Qeshm Island on Saturday.
On Friday, Iranian air defenses destroyed a US MQ-1 drone over Qeshm Island, Iranian media, citing the IRGC, reported.