U.S. Central Command destroyed an Iranian surveillance tower at Chabahar port on Saturday as part of a week-long campaign of nightly airstrikes [1].

The operation targeted infrastructure used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to monitor merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. By neutralizing these capabilities, the U.S. military aims to disrupt the IRGC's ability to track and attack commercial shipping, and cut critical military logistics routes [1, 2].

The strike occurred on the seventh consecutive night of U.S. aerial operations [1]. These missions focused on weakening Iranian military power in the region and targeting supply lines near the Oman Sea coast and Bandar Abbas [1, 2].

A U.S. Central Command spokesperson said the military successfully destroyed the surveillance tower at Chabahar port. The spokesperson said the IRGC had used the facility for decades to target merchant ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz [1].

The escalation in military activity has impacted global markets. International oil prices rose by 4.5% [1] amid the heightened conflict between the two nations.

U.S. officials said the strategy was designed to diminish the IRGC's operational reach. The sequence of nightly strikes suggests a coordinated effort to dismantle the surveillance network that allows Iran to maintain a tactical advantage over international shipping lanes [1].

“The IRGC had used the facility for decades to target merchant ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.”

The systematic destruction of surveillance infrastructure at Chabahar port represents a tactical shift to blind the IRGC's maritime awareness. By targeting the specific tools used to track merchant vessels, the U.S. is attempting to lower the risk for commercial shipping in one of the world's most volatile chokepoints, though the immediate spike in oil prices indicates that markets remain sensitive to any direct kinetic action between the U.S. and Iran.