US Central Command, 17 July 2026

On July 16, U.S. forces successfully destroyed the Chah Bahar Shahid Kalantari Port surveillance tower, part of a maritime surveillance network along Iran’s Gulf of Oman coastline used for decades by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to track and target commercial… pic.twitter.com/CgBNvgOFf9

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 17, 2026

… vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

The destruction of the tower directly degrades IRGC’s ability to coordinate attacks on innocent civilian crew members. Furthermore, the strike protects freedom of navigation in regional waters for all vessels, except for ships attempting to violate the ongoing U.S. naval blockade against Iran.

https://t.co/jZlSVRePRC pic.twitter.com/Nj5o0oiphH

— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) July 17, 2026