The Iranian regime launched a new wave of missile attacks against 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 on Wednesday, the United States completed another 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 took place after Washington confirmed the reinstatement of a naval blockade on Iranian ports and coasts, and after two commercial ships were diverted, which the Pentagon said attempted to evade U.S.-imposed restrictions.
President Donald Trump hardened 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 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 stop the war in the Middle East
Pakistan announced on Thursday that it will encourage the United States and Iran to halt the violence and resume dialogue under the memorandum of understanding (MoU) that it helped mediate last month.
“Although implementing 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,” Tahir Andrabi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said 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 the early hours of Thursday, though they remain elevated amid escalating U.S. strikes on Iran and Iranian missile and drone attacks on Kuwait and Bahrain.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, fell 0.5% to $84.57 per barrel. At the end of February, before the start of the conflict, it traded near $72 per barrel. The U.S. benchmark declined 0.2% to $79.43 per barrel.
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Tehran threatened regional infrastructure if the U.S. 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 threats to hit Iranian facilities.
The spokesman for Iran’s military headquarters said that if those warnings are carried out, “the entire infrastructure of the region would be crushed under the steel blows of the Iranian armed forces.”
Israel informed the Pentagon it will keep troops in “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza
Israel’s defense minister, Israel Katz, told his U.S. counterpart Pete Hegseth that the Israeli military will maintain its forces in the “security zones” established in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.
In a statement released on 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 jihadi forces.”
Fire and smoke observed in Chabahar, Iran, following 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 further threats.
The Iranian army, for its part, 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, released by Iranian state media, said the strike was part of the ninth phase of “Operation Saeqeh” (Lightning) and was launched in retaliation for recent U.S. attacks on Iran, including an airstrike on a military barracks in Sistan and Baluchestan province that Tehran says killed seven soldiers.
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Iraq’s prime minister condemned Thursday’s “drone attack” on Erbil
Iraq’s prime minister, Ali al-Zaidi, condemned a “drone attack” that violated Erbil’s airspace in the Kurdistan region after several devices 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, Iran’s capital
Iranian state media reported that air defense alerts were activated 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 said that, so far, no casualties have been reported in Tehran. Additional explosions were heard in the western province of Lorestan and in Semnan in the north, according to IRNA and the Mehr news agency.