Military action against Iran formally restarted last week, Trump told lawmakers

President Trump formally notified Congress that "military action" against Iran restarted past week, according to a missive obtained by CBS News connected Monday, arsenic a monthslong ceasefire comes to an end.

Military enactment "commenced connected July 7," the president said successful a connection dated July 10 and addressed to Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, the Senate's president pro tempore. 

The missive was sent aft Mr. Trump declared the U.S.-Iran ceasefire "over" and ordered respective rounds of strikes connected Iranian targets, successful effect to Iranian attacks connected commercialized vessels successful the Strait of Hormuz past week. Iranian authorities person insisted that ships question support and usage an Iranian-approved way earlier transiting the strait, and responded to the U.S. strikes by launching missiles and drones astatine U.S.-allied Gulf states.

The notification to Congress calls the astir caller strikes "limited, measured, planned, and executed successful a mode designed to minimize civilian casualties." The goal, Mr. Trump wrote, is to people Iranian subject sites that airs a menace to U.S. forces and commercialized shipping.

Under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, a post-Vietnam War law, the president indispensable notify Congress wrong 48 hours of the commencement of subject hostilities. Shortly aft the U.S.-Iran warfare began successful precocious February, the White House sent a notification to Congress, but the Trump administration's presumption was that hostilities had "terminated" aft the 2 sides signed a ceasefire successful aboriginal April.

In past week's missive to lawmakers, Mr. Trump wrote that the U.S. had engaged successful "productive, good-faith efforts to execute a diplomatic solution to Iran's malign behavior," starring the 2 countries to ink a memorandum of understanding past month. But helium said Iran's attacks connected 3 lipid tankers aboriginal past week violated a proviso of the woody that requires Iran to put for harmless transit done the Strait of Hormuz, starring to U.S. strikes.

"United States Armed Forces stay postured to instrumentality further action, arsenic indispensable and appropriate, to code further threats and attacks upon the United States oregon its allies and partners and to guarantee the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran ceases being a menace to the United States and to our allies and partners," the missive says. 

The War Powers Resolution limits subject hostilities to 60 days unless Congress votes to authorize subject force. The Trump medication has argued that proviso of the instrumentality is unconstitutional, but it has ne'er been tested successful court, and immoderate members of some parties person argued Mr. Trump should question support from Congress if hostilities past longer than 60 days.

Both the House and Senate passed a solution past month seeking to bounds Mr. Trump's quality to transportation retired further subject enactment against Iran without legislature authorization. Democrats person said they're considering their ineligible options to unit Mr. Trump to comply. The president has argued that helium is acting nether his law authority.