The Iranian regime launched a new wave of missile attacks against Persian Gulf countries that host U.S. military facilities. Jordan, Kuwait and Iraq reported intercepting several projectiles and condemned the Iranian strikes in the early hours of Thursday.
Late Wednesday, the United States carried out a new round of strikes on Iranian territory aimed at reducing Tehran’s ability to “threaten innocent mariners operating commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”
The new offensive came after Washington confirmed the reestablishment of a naval blockade on Iranian ports and coasts, and after two commercial ships were diverted which, according to the Pentagon, attempted to evade U.S.-imposed restrictions.
President Donald Trump toughened his stance toward Tehran and warned that the military campaign in the Middle East could expand in the coming days if the Iranian regime does not agree to return to the negotiating table. “Next week the situation will be very bad for them,” he said.
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Pakistan urged Iran and the U.S. to resume peace talks to halt the war in the Middle East
Pakistan announced Thursday that it will encourage the United States and Iran to halt the violence and resume dialogue under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) it helped mediate last month.
“While the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding faces challenges, Pakistan will continue to encourage all parties to end the violence and resume technical-level talks in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding,” said Tahir Andrabi, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to the press in Islamabad.
“We expressed our hope that the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will normalize soon and emphasized the importance of ensuring the security and freedom of maritime navigation,” he added.
Oil prices fall
Oil prices fell in early Thursday trading, though they remain elevated amid intensifying U.S. attacks on Iran and Iranian missile and drone strikes against Kuwait and Bahrain.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, slipped 0.5% to $84.57 a barrel. At the end of February, before the conflict began, it traded near $72 a barrel. the U.S. benchmark fell 0.2% to $79.43 a barrel.
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Tehran threatened regional infrastructure if the United States attacks Iran
Tehran warned on Thursday that it would strike the regional infrastructure of countries allied with the United States if Washington follows through on its warnings to attack Iranian facilities.
The spokesperson for Iran’s military headquarters said that if those warnings were carried out, “all the region’s infrastructure would be crushed under the steel blows of the Iranian armed forces.”
Israel told the Pentagon it will keep troops in “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza
Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, informed his U.S. counterpart, Pete Hegseth, that the Israeli military will keep its forces in the “security zones” established within Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.
According to a statement released Thursday, the two officials spoke overnight and Katz “emphasized Israel’s determination to remain in the security zones in Syria, Gaza and Lebanon to protect its borders and nearby communities from threats posed by jihadist forces.”
Fire and smoke seen in Chabahar, Iran, after reports of an explosion
Jordan intercepted eight Iranian missiles overnight
Jordan’s air defense systems intercepted and destroyed eight Iranian missiles aimed at the country in the early hours of Thursday, the Jordanian army reported. No casualties or material damage were reported. Engineering teams secured the areas where debris fell, and the armed forces remain on high alert for possible new threats.
For its part, the Iranian army said its drones attacked communications systems, fuel depots and a fixed radar station at Al Azraq air base in Jordan, identified as a U.S. military base. The statement, published by official Iranian media, said the offensive corresponds to the ninth phase of “Operation Saeqeh” (Lightning) and was launched in response to recent U.S. attacks on Iran, including a strike on a military barracks in Sistan and Baluchestan province that Tehran said killed seven servicemen.
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Iraq’s prime minister condemned the “drone attack” on Erbil on Thursday
Iraq’s prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi, condemned a “drone attack” that violated Erbil’s airspace in the Kurdistan region after several drones were shot down, his office reported.
Al-Zaidi said security agencies, in coordination with regional forces, have been instructed to take all necessary measures to prevent a repeat of these attacks and to protect the safety of Iraqi society.
Iranian media reported explosions in Tehran, the capital of Iran
State media in Iran reported that air defense alerts were triggered in several areas of Tehran on Thursday morning and that explosions were heard in the north and west of the country.
The state news agency IRNA reported that, so far, there have been no casualties in Tehran. Additional explosions were heard in the western province of Lorestan and in Semnan, north of the country, according to IRNA and the Mehr news agency.