The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says it carried out retaliatory missile and drone strikes against 85 US military sites after Washington breached the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) through attacks on civilian locations in southern Iran.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the IRGC said the US violated the MoU by launching airstrikes in the early hours of the day against several coastal bases and civilian facilities in Hormozgan Province and Mahshahr port.
The statement said the attacks came as millions of mourners in Iran and Iraq participated in funeral ceremonies for the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, describing the strikes as an attempt by Washington to overshadow the historic gatherings after its military defeat during the recent aggression against Iran.
In what it described as an initial response, the IRGC said its naval and aerospace forces carried out a joint missile and drone operation targeting 85 key US military installations at Port Salman, home to the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, and Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait.
The IRGC also announced the downing of an MQ-9 drone, saying the aircraft attempted to interfere with the operation before it was shot down.
Ayatollah Khamenei was martyred on February 28 on the first day of the launch of the latest round of unprovoked US-Israeli aggression against Iran.
The main funeral procession in Tehran was held on Monday, followed by ceremonies in Qom on Tuesday, while special farewell and funeral ceremonies are taking place on Wednesday in the holy Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala.
The final funeral ceremony will be held in Mashhad on Thursday, where Ayatollah Khamenei will be laid to rest at the shrine of Imam Reza (AS), the eighth Shia Imam.
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