International
oi-Prakash KL
The United States and Iran exchanged heavy blows on Thursday, reigniting conflict over the strategic Strait of Hormuz just one month after a preliminary deal aimed at ending hostilities.
President Donald Trump, speaking on Thursday night on election security, declared the US is “winning big in Iran and you will see the fruits of that labor very, very shortly.”
The US and Iran exchanged significant airstrikes and missile barrages near the Strait of Hormuz; US attacks hit bridges in Hormozgan province and other Iranian military targets, while Iran retaliated against Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan, marking the sixth consecutive night of US strikes.
The US military expanded its airstrike campaign to include bridges in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province, killing at least seven people, according to Iranian state television. The attacks hit the coastal city of Bandar Khamir overnight into Friday. Iran retaliated with missile barrages against US-allied Gulf nations. In Qatar, authorities warned civilians to take shelter as air defenses intercepted incoming missiles. Explosions echoed overhead as Iran also targeted Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
The US Central Command said it has completed its latest major wave of strikes against Iran. In a post on X, it said, “U.S. forces, including fighter jets, aerial drones, and warships, launched precision munitions that hit dozens of Iranian military targets such as coastal surveillance and air defense sites, military logistics infrastructure, and maritime capabilities. This was the sixth consecutive night of U.S. strikes against Iran.”
The CENTCOM added that it is further degrading Iranian military capabilities and holding Iran accountable for recent attacks on commercial shipping at the Commander in Chief’s direction.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed they struck a US airbase in Jordan with ballistic missiles in response to an American attack near a children’s cancer hospital in Ahvaz. The facility was evacuated, with foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei condemning the strikes as “barbaric.”
Kuwait reported intercepting Iranian drones, while Bahrain sounded air raid sirens. Explosions were also reported in Semnan and Tehran, with air defenses activated across the capital.
Iranian state media later reported fresh US strikes near Qeshm Island and Bandar Abbas, while explosions rocked Bushehr, home to Iran’s only civilian nuclear plant. A senior Iranian military spokesman said “we will never back down over the Strait of Hormuz.”
Channel 12 news reported Israel is preparing for further escalation, believing the US may broaden strikes to include civilian infrastructure.
With inputs from agencies
