NEW: US Hammers Iran’s Anti-Ship Missile Sites With Bunker Busters Near Strait Of Hormuz

U.S. forces blasted hardened Iranian anti-ship missile sites near the Strait of Hormuz with 5,000-pound “bunker buster” weapons on Tuesday, escalating pressure on Tehran as the regime tightens its grip on the world’s most critical oil chokepoint.

“Hours ago, U.S. forces successfully employed multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrator munitions on hardened Iranian missile sites along Iran’s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz,” U.S. Central Command said in a post on X.

“The Iranian anti-ship cruise missiles in these sites posed a risk to international shipping in the strait,” CENTCOM added.

The strikes came as tanker traffic through the narrow waterway has plunged since early March, with commercial vessels facing repeated attacks and growing warnings from Iran. The Strait of Hormuz links the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and is a major artery for global oil and gas shipments. With traffic squeezed, crude prices have surged more than 40% since the war began, pushing past $100 a barrel and fueling fresh concerns about pain at the pump and broader economic fallout.

The munitions used in the strikes were described as deep penetrator weapons, often referred to as bunker busters, designed to punch through hardened or underground targets before detonating. The GBU-72 was first tested by the Air Force in 2021.

Hours ago, U.S. forces successfully employed multiple 5,000-pound deep penetrator munitions on hardened Iranian missile sites along Iran’s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian anti-ship cruise missiles in these sites posed a risk to international shipping in the… pic.twitter.com/hgCSFH0cqO

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

Iran has threatened to choke off energy flows through the strait and has warned it won’t allow “even a single liter of oil” destined for the U.S., Israel and their allies to pass. U.S. officials say that kind of threat cannot stand, especially as strikes and counterstrikes spread across the region.

President Donald Trump has been publicly pushing allies and trade partners to step up and help secure the waterway, arguing that nations that benefit most from the strait should help protect it. But the administration has also signaled it’s prepared to act with or without them.

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“I think NATO’s making a very foolish mistake,” Trump said in the Oval Office on Tuesday when asked about allied support to assist the U.S. in escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. “And I’ve long said that, you know, I wonder whether or not NATO would ever be there for us.”

Trump added: “So this was a great test because we don’t need them, but they should have been there.”

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The bunker-buster strikes follow other major U.S. actions aimed at degrading Iran’s ability to threaten shipping. The U.S. struck military sites on Kharg Island off Iran’s coast on Friday, targeting key positions tied to Iran’s coastal defenses while leaving oil infrastructure intact, according to public statements from the administration.

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