‘Region will become hell’: Iran launches retaliatory strikes on over 18 US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan
US Central Command forces completed additional self-defense strikes against multiple targets in Iran on Wednesday at President Donald Trump’s direction, as Tehran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed to all vessels and claimed its forces hit 18 US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation.Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that the Strait of Hormuz is “closed to all vessels, including oil tankers and commercial ships,” effective immediately, warning that any vessel attempting to transit the waterway “will be targeted.” Heavy clashes and an exchange of fire have been reported in the strait between US forces and IRGC naval units, according to Iranian media.Iran also launched ballistic missiles toward Jordan from the cities of Zanjan, Tabriz and Urmieh, according to reports. The skies over Jordan were seen with incoming fire as the missiles were intercepted.CENTCOM said its forces launched strikes on Iranian military surveillance capabilities, communication systems, and air defense sites across Iran, using precision munitions from US Marine Corps, Air Force, and Navy assets.“The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression,” CENTCOM said in a statement. “U.S. forces remain vigilant, lethal, and ready.”
Iran claims 18 US targets struck
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said its forces carried out two waves of operations targeting 18 “important” US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain, as Tehran vowed a “decisive military response” to American aggression.According to reports cited by Iran International, the strikes targeted the Ali Al-Salem and Ahmed Al-Jaber air bases in Kuwait, and Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain. The IRGC said its Aerospace Force and Navy carried out the operations in response to US attacks on Iranian positions in southern Iran, including areas near Bandar Abbas.
US denies strikes on warship, Hormuz closure
US Central Command pushed back against Iranian claims, stating that no US warships have been struck in the Strait of Hormuz and that commercial ships continue to transit in and out of the waterway.CENTCOM also announced that it began launching additional self-defense strikes against multiple targets in Iran at 5:15 pm ET, at the direction of President Donald Trump, in response to what it described as Iran’s “unwarranted and continued aggression.”
Iran accuses US of ‘calculated war crime’
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei accused the US military of “deliberately” attacking civilian water infrastructure in Sirik, a port town in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province. He said the attack destroyed two reservoirs that supplied drinking water to more than 20,000 residents across 10 villages.“This is not collateral damage – it is a calculated war crime and a flagrant violation of human rights and international humanitarian law,” Baghaei wrote. “The US must be held accountable for committing such systematic brutal attacks on civilian life-sustaining infrastructure.”
Iran says US halted strikes due to ‘strong response’
Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters claimed that the United States stopped attacks on areas in southern Iran due to a “strong and decisive response” by Iran’s armed forces. The command added that Iran’s military response to US “aggression and provocations” will continue.An IRGC-affiliated source told Tasnim that Iran will respond with a “decisive military response” to US military actions and will never “submit to threats or military folly.”
IRGC commander warns of ‘turning the region into hell’
IRGC Aerospace Force commander Brigadier General Majid Mousavi warned that Iran would respond across the region if the Strait of Hormuz is destabilized.“We will bring the region into hell for you from across Iran if you make the sacred Strait of Hormuz unsafe,” he was quoted as saying.
