The United States intensified its military campaign against Iran on Thursday, striking targets farther north and attacking a vessel accused of attempting to bypass Washington’s naval blockade.
Iran responded by launching missiles and drones toward regional countries allied with the United States, while warning that its retaliation could become significantly broader.
The renewed violence confirms the collapse of the temporary ceasefire reached last month. For several days, the United States and Iran have exchanged attacks while competing for control of the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian officials claim that American strikes have killed more than 35 people and injured over 300 others.
American Strikes Reach Areas Near Tehran
For the first time during the latest escalation, American attacks reportedly reached locations around the Iranian capital, Tehran.
The expansion indicates that Washington is widening the range of military and strategic sites being targeted.
Late Thursday, the United States launched another wave of strikes, saying the operation was intended to further weaken Iran’s military capabilities.
The conflict began on February 28, when the United States and Israel launched military action against Iran. Tehran then effectively blocked commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The closure caused global oil prices to rise sharply and gave Iran significant negotiating leverage because of the waterway’s importance to international energy supplies.
Iran Warns of Attacks on Regional Infrastructure
Col. Ebrahim Zolfaghari, a spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, warned that Tehran could strike infrastructure throughout the region if the United States follows through on threats to attack Iranian bridges and power facilities.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested that such infrastructure could become a target.
Zolfaghari said Iran would not permit the United States, which he described as an outside regional power, to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz.
He called control of the waterway an “invincible red line” for Iran.
U.S. Attacks Reported Across Multiple Iranian Provinces
Iranian state media reported that Thursday’s American strikes targeted areas around Tehran and Semnan province.
Semnan is associated with Iran’s ballistic missile manufacturing operations and space program.
Additional attacks were reported in:
- Hamedan
- Hormozgan
- Khuzestan
- Lorestan
- Markazi
- Sistan and Baluchestan
- Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz
The reports suggest that American operations extended across a wide area of Iran.
Bandar Abbas Strikes Leave Several People Injured
Iranian state media said seven people were injured when an American strike hit the Allah-Akbar Hill residential neighbourhood in Bandar Abbas.
Two additional people were reportedly injured in another strike targeting the city’s railway junction station.
Witnesses also reported that two bridges west of Bandar Abbas were hit. State media said the attack killed three people and injured nine others.
The United States did not immediately confirm all casualty figures reported by Iranian media.
Greater Tunb Island Military Sites Targeted
U.S. Central Command confirmed that an attack on Greater Tunb Island targeted Iranian defence and missile facilities.
Greater Tunb is one of three rocky islands positioned where the Persian Gulf meets the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran seized the islands in 1971 from territory that later became part of the United Arab Emirates. Their location allows Tehran to maintain significant strategic influence over movement through the strait.
U.S. Disables Oil Tanker Accused of Defying Blockade
The American military also said it disabled a Curaçao-flagged oil tanker travelling toward Iran’s primary oil export terminal.
According to U.S. officials, the vessel ignored repeated warnings before American forces fired a missile at it.
The strike was part of Washington’s enforcement of the naval blockade that was reimposed on Iranian ports on Wednesday.
U.S. Central Command said American forces had redirected three commercial ships attempting to cross the blockade.
Another vessel was disabled after refusing to comply, while a separate ship was boarded to ensure it followed American instructions.
The command claimed that waters surrounding the Strait of Hormuz remained open, except for vessels attempting to violate what it described as America’s “steel wall blockade.”
Iranian Military Barracks Hit in Earlier Attack
Iranian state television reported that an American strike on Wednesday targeted a barracks used by Iran’s 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade in Sistan and Baluchestan province.
The brigade operates tanks and other armoured military vehicles.
According to the report, seven people were killed, including both conscripted personnel and professional soldiers.
Iran Launches Missiles and Drones at U.S. Allies
Iran retaliated on Thursday by launching missiles and drones toward Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.
All three countries host American military forces.
Authorities in those nations confirmed the attacks, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or major damage.
The strikes demonstrated Iran’s ability to target locations beyond its borders and raised concerns that the conflict could spread across the wider Middle East.
Drone Attacks Reported in Iraq
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi condemned an overnight drone attack in the country’s semiautonomous Kurdish region.
Authorities said the drone was intercepted.
The incident occurred while the prime minister was visiting the United States, where he said Iraq would work toward disarming non-state armed organizations, including groups supported by Iran.
A separate drone targeted a tanker in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Basra in southern Iraq on Thursday, according to Iraq’s state-run INA news agency.
No injuries were reported in that incident.
Strait of Hormuz Becomes Main Focus of Conflict
The latest phase of the fighting is centred on the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has attacked vessels travelling along a route controlled by American forces.
The strait is one of the world’s most important shipping corridors for crude oil and natural gas.
Data from maritime intelligence company Lloyd’s List Intelligence showed that weekly cargo traffic through the strait fell by almost 25 per cent at the beginning of the month.
That decline occurred before the latest increase in attacks.
Shipping Companies Avoid Dangerous Waterway
Some oil tankers are reportedly travelling through the Strait of Hormuz with their location-transmitting equipment switched off to reduce the risk of being tracked.
However, many commercial vessels are remaining stationary rather than entering the dangerous waterway.
A growing volume of regional energy exports is being transported through pipelines. However, those routes cannot carry enough oil and gas to compensate for the reduction in maritime shipments.
Reopening Strait by Force Could Require Major Operation
The United States has threatened to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz through military action.
Experts have warned that achieving that objective could require a much larger naval force and potentially tens of thousands of ground troops.
Such an operation could significantly expand the scale, cost and duration of the conflict.
Brent Crude Oil Trades Above $85 Per Barrel
Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, traded above $85 per barrel on Thursday.
That represented an increase of more than 15 per cent compared with prices recorded before the war began.
However, the price remained well below the nearly $120-per-barrel level reached during the most intense period of the conflict.
Higher energy prices could create political difficulties for Trump and the Republican Party ahead of the November congressional elections.
Rising fuel and transportation costs could also increase financial pressure on households and businesses.
Trump Says Diplomatic Settlement Remains Possible
Despite the escalation, Trump said a negotiated settlement with Iran remained possible.
Speaking Wednesday at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania, he claimed Iranian leaders were unhappy with American actions and wanted to reach an agreement.
Trump said the United States would determine whether a settlement could be achieved or whether Washington would instead move to “finish it off.”
Pakistan Continues Mediation Efforts
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday that diplomatic efforts were continuing to bring Washington and Tehran back to negotiations.
However, officials acknowledged that arranging talks had become increasingly difficult as the military confrontation intensified.
Repeated attacks, threats against infrastructure and disagreements over control of the Strait of Hormuz have weakened the possibility of an immediate ceasefire.
American Citizen Reportedly Released by Iran
Trump announced on social media that Iran had released an American citizen who had allegedly been wrongfully detained since 2024.
He described the release as a gesture of goodwill but did not initially provide the detainee’s identity or other details.
Human rights lawyer Jared Genser later identified the person as his client, Dena Karari.
Karari is described as a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen who operates a nonprofit organization. She had reportedly been charged with espionage.
Iranian authorities did not immediately confirm her release. Her detention had also not previously been publicly disclosed, which is not unusual in some cases involving foreign or dual-national prisoners in Iran.
The widening U.S. strikes and Iran’s missile and drone retaliation show that the temporary ceasefire has fully collapsed. With attacks now reaching areas near Tehran and multiple regional countries, the risk of a broader Middle East conflict continues to grow.
Control of the Strait of Hormuz remains at the centre of the confrontation, disrupting shipping and pushing oil prices higher. Although diplomatic efforts are continuing, repeated military operations and threats against critical infrastructure are making a peaceful settlement increasingly difficult.