The United States and Iran have resumed intense military exchanges, with Washington threatening further strikes as Tehran accused the U.S. of attacks that reportedly killed civilians.
The U.S. Central Command said it targeted Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps air-defence systems, radar, maritime assets, mine-laying capabilities and communication sites. Iranian media reported strikes on several locations near the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran, meanwhile, said it attacked U.S. positions in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Iraq. The IRGC claimed to have killed U.S. personnel in Jordan and Erbil, but U.S. officials said initial assessments showed no American casualties in Jordan. Iraq and the U.S. have not independently confirmed the reported Erbil casualties.
In Kuwait, authorities said an Iranian drone struck a residential complex in the capital, causing damage but no deaths. Jordan reported intercepting 10 of 13 ballistic missiles that entered its airspace, while Bahrain said Iranian drones were intercepted and destroyed.
Qatar, which previously helped mediate a ceasefire, warned that the latest attacks could complicate efforts to contain the conflict and said “it holds the Islamic Republic of Iran fully legally responsible for these attacks and their repercussions and consequences.”
Conflict Puts Pressure on Both Sides
The renewed fighting ends months of relative restraint, with both countries facing significant military and economic pressures.
Iran’s economy and conventional military capabilities have been weakened by the conflict, while the U.S. has reportedly depleted a substantial portion of its global stockpile of precision long-range missiles.
U.S. President Donald Trump said, “I like our position now much better, with almost total control of the Hormuz Strait, and their economy totally collapsing,” while asking, “When are the Iranian people going to rise up and fight?”
Iran’s military leadership responded that any country supporting the U.S. would face “heavier, more widespread, and devastating responses.”
The escalation has also affected global markets, with Asian stocks falling, oil prices reaching a five-week high and U.S. Treasury yields rising.
Civilian Casualties Reported
Iranian authorities reported significant civilian casualties following an alleged U.S. strike on a wedding near Sirik, close to the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian Red Crescent said five people were killed and 50 wounded, while Iranian state media reported a higher figure of 68 wounded. U.S. officials have not publicly commented on the incident.
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Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said, “This cruelty cannot be separated from the chain of atrocities that preceded it,” referring to previous attacks, including a blast in Minab that Iranian authorities said killed 160 people at a girls’ school.
Separately, Iranian state media reported that seven people were killed and eight wounded in U.S. missile strikes on three locations in Khuzestan province.
Iran’s foreign ministry vowed to respond to “these savage crimes with firmness” and warned, “Those governments and international institutions that remain silent in the face of such barbarism, or seek to justify such acts, must understand that their silence is not neutrality.”
The latest escalation raises fresh concerns about the conflict spreading across the wider Middle East, particularly around the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.
Reuters
