The US launched airstrikes against Iran as Tehran fired back at countries in the region in escalating attacks that threatened to derail efforts to end the war, as Donald Trump warned that Tehran would “pay the price” for stalled peace negotiations.
The US president’s warning came hours after Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan — all of which host US troops — came under Iranian fire.
It was the second time this week that back-and-forth strikes have tested the ceasefire after Iran and Israel targeted each other on Monday, and it again raised the question of how much pressure the deal can take before it cracks.
It was not clear what Mr Trump’s post on Truth Social would mean for Tehran.
The comments again underlined Mr Trump’s whipsaw approach to the war, after suggesting on Monday that a deal to end the conflict could be reached in a matter of days.
Iran, meanwhile, has proved resilient despite having faced weeks of heavy bombing, betting that its ability to effectively close the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial passageway for the world’s oil and natural gas — gives it a strong bargaining chip.
Both countries seem to be looking for a way to end the conflict — if they can manage to sell it as a win at home.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears intent on pursuing much more difficult goals: the collapse of Iran’s theocratic government, the elimination of its nuclear programme, and the destruction of the Iranian-allied Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.
https://x.com/araghchi/status/2064410758587339035?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
That will make compromise much harder.
Mr Netanyahu posted on X around the same time as Mr Trump, again insisting that Iran could never have a nuclear weapon and defending Israel’s decisions to attack the Islamic Republic in the past.
Since the US and Israel started the war with attacks on Iran on February 28, the conflict has shaken the global economy, driven up energy prices around the world, and made many basics, including food, more expensive.
Brent crude oil, the international standard, was at more than 91 dollars a barrel on Wednesday, up more than 25% since the start of the war.
In the latest strikes, US fighter jets targeted “air defence, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites”, the military’s Central Command said.
Iran acknowledged strikes around Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island, but gave no details on the damage.
“The operation was a proportional response to recent attacks on US forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters,” Central Command said.
Iran’s top diplomat vowed that there would be a response, and Tehran later claimed attacks in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
Jordan said it shot down five incoming missiles, which Iran said targeted the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base.
The base has hosted American F-35 fighter jets and other aircraft.
Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency carried a military statement saying there were no injuries and that explosives experts examined the debris from the interceptions.
Bahrain and Kuwait said they intercepted incoming fire, without elaborating.
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the American attacks as a violation of Iranian sovereignty in calls with his counterparts from Turkey and Saudi Arabia “and emphasised the inherent right of self-defence, including reciprocal action”, according to a post on his office’s Telegram channel.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said in televised comments on Wednesday that in light of the new attacks, Iran would review its stance on negotiations to end the war.
The exchanges of fire came a day after a US Army attack helicopter crashed near the Strait of Hormuz after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
It was not clear whether the collision was intentional.
A drone boat rescued both of the helicopter’s aviators, and Mr Trump said they were uninjured.
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Meanwhile, guards aboard a cargo ship off the coast of Yemen in the Gulf of Aden exchanged fire with gunmen in a small boat and repelled their attack, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said.
No group immediately claimed responsibility.
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have said they will resume their attacks against Israel-affiliated ships in the Red Sea.
Somali pirates have also become more active in the region.
The UKMTO later reported a fire in the engine room of a tanker in the Gulf of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz, saying one person had been hurt and two others aboard were missing.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire.
Before he accused Iran of downing the US helicopter, Mr Trump expressed renewed optimism over negotiations with Iran, but did not say why there was reason for hope.
Mediators, led predominantly by Pakistan, have been trying for weeks to get a deal across the line.
While Mr Trump, wary of high gas prices and upcoming congressional elections in November, seems to be looking for a quick win, he is also making demands that will be tough for Iran to swallow.
The US wants to see Iran give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
While Iran insists its nuclear programme is peaceful, that uranium is a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels.
Iran is refusing to give up the uranium and demanding relief from sanctions.
It also wants the release of frozen assets even before a final agreement is in place, something rejected by Mr Trump.
It is not clear how those differences can be bridged — and Mr Trump has repeatedly threatened to walk away from the talks.
On his Truth Social platform overnight he seemed to be warning again that he was ready to return to all-out war, posting a clip from the American TV series The West Wing with actor Martin Sheen as president bellowing: “We don’t come back with a proportional response, we come back with total disaster!”
Meanwhile, Iran has continued to insist that any deal to end the war must also end fighting between its ally Hezbollah and Israel.
Instead, Israel has intensified its military campaign against the militant group.
Israel’s military said on Wednesday it launched multiple strikes in southern Lebanon over the past day, targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.
An airstrike on a village east of Tyre killed at least six people, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported.
