A U.S. official has told @haltman that no U.S. forces have been injured since the renewal of hostilities in the region and that most of the Iranian drones and missiles fired at U.S. bases and infrastructure and Gulf neighbors have been intercepted.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has announced that at the direction of the Commander-in-Chief, President Donald J. Trump, forces have began launching additional strikes against Iran to continue degrading their ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham’s cause of death has been revealed to be a ruptured aorta resulting from chronic heart disease, according to preliminary findings released Sunday by the Office of the D.C. Chief Medical Examiner.

Here's the military air picture, visible via @flightradar24
, over the Strait of Hormuz region at approximately 5:00 p.m. ET, as the United States commenced a new round of strikes against military targets in southern Iran in response to Tehran's continued attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait without Iranian authorization.

Visible are multiple U.S. Air Force aerial refueling tankers operating alongside U.S. Air Force E-3 "Sentry" airborne early warning and control (AWACS) aircraft flying in racetrack orbits over western Saudi Arabia.

The Office of Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell has published a photo of the Senator alongside his wife, Elaine Chao, as well as a statement responding to rumors surrounding his mysterious hospitalization last month and possible death:

“To my fellow Kentuckians –

When you elected me to a seventh term and made me our Commonwealth’s longest serving Senator, you did so trusting that I’d keep showing up to fight for you every day. And over the past several weeks, Elaine and I have appreciated both your well wishes and your honest questions about what was keeping me away from the Senate.

You all know how folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older. Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct – I can’t help it.

But at the same time, I’ve had more than my share of experience with physical vulnerabilities. Surviving childhood polio meant spending my entire life with mobility challenges. They haven’t exactly gotten easier to manage with age. And last month, I took a fall which landed me in the hospital.

My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia.

I can assure you that I’ve been a good patient. At my age, I tend to do what my doctors tell me to do. I’ve submitted to every test they can think of to help figure out what caused this incident. And I’m continuing to do everything they ask to speed my recovery. In fact, with signs of continued progress, I’ve been able to move from hospital care to a rehabilitation center where I’ll keep regaining my strength.

As much as it frustrates me, this process takes time. And on the advice of my doctors, I won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet. But rest assured that, in the meantime, I’m not taking a break from the Senate business that matters to you. I’ve been working closely with my legislative staff on current issues, and with my Kentucky team who help me provide timely constituent services across our Commonwealth. I’ve also been keeping in touch with my Senate colleagues on the appropriations process, midterm politics, and everything in between.

You’re right to expect your representatives to work hard for you. And part of my decision to retire at the end of my term this coming January was being honest about the demands of Senate work. But I still have unfinished business to complete on your behalf, and I have every intention of finishing the job you elected me to do.

I’ll keep working hard to get back on the Senate floor as soon as possible. And I’ll keep you posted on the progress of my recovery. Until then, I’m so grateful for your prayers and well wishes.”

Fires seen burning the distance following U.S. strikes on the coastal area of Bandar Abbas, Hormozgan Province, Southern Iran.

Video footage which allegedly shows the launch of ground-based missiles, possibly ATACMS by M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), earlier tonight from Kuwait in the direction of Iran.

Ballistic missile launches are continuing at this hour from Iran, with indications that targets include Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.

Air raid sirens sounding now in Bahrain.

Explosions heard near the Headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.

Multiple ballistic missile launches now from the Jam Missile Field in the Bushehr Province of Southern Iran.

U.S. Central Command has said that they have completed the most recent wave on strikes against Iran, as dozens of strikes were carried out against Iranian military air-defense systems, coastal radar sites, missile and drone capabilities, and small boats. In addition to the strikes U.S. Central Command has said that for the first time one-way attack sea drones were used to target Iranian assets as well.

Today, the European Union revealed that Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) is responsible for a number of malicious cyberattacks over the past few years, included the infiltration of governmental networks and sabotage of critical infrastructure in EU members states, primarily France, Germany, Poland, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Finland, as well as international partners, notably Ukraine.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center has issued an advisory for ships transiting in the vicinity of Yemen after receiving a report from a vessel traveling eastbound approximately 50NM south of Aden, Yemen that was approached by 6 small boats resulting in the security team firing warning shots. The advisory states that the boats are following now 1NM behind.