JUST hours after Donald Trump said that the temporary ceasefire with Iran was “over”, the US military carried out a reported 90 strikes amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.
On Wednesday night, Iranian state media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, a port city in the strait of Hormuz, Sirik, another southern coastal city, and the Busheher province in the south west of the country, which is home to Iran’s nuclear power plant complex.
Mehr news agency, sponsored by the Iranian Government, said that attacks did not cause damage to the plant.
US forces hit around 90 targets across Iran overnight, it has been reported.
“This is in retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“If it happens again, it will get much worse!”
The strikes were confirmed by US Central Command on Twitter/X.
“At the direction of the Commander in Chief, US Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” they said.
Three cargo ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz were attacked on Tuesday, leading to the most extensive exchange of fire between the US and Iran since the interim deal was signed last month.
A temporary sanctions waiver for Tehran to export oil was revoked by the US Treasury.
Hopes of turning the 17 June memorandum of understanding into a permanent deal have been dented by the recent escalation
Iran attacked US military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait on Wednesday, and again on Thursday. The Guardian reports that sirens were heard at least twice in Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters, but there was no immediate word of damage.
Kuwait’s military said it was actively intercepting incoming missiles and drones.
Iranian state TV reported that explosions were heard on Abu Musa Island, one of three small islands whose location allows Iran to control the Strait of Hormuz.
US Senator Bernie Sanders said of Trump’s action: “Restarting his reckless war with Iran won’t make America stronger. It will cost more lives and waste more taxpayer dollars.”
He added on X that “after getting the United States into a war based on lies, Trump has now declared the ceasefire with Iran ‘over’ after less than a month”.
At the Nato summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump said the US would “probably hit [Iran] hard again tonight”, later adding the latest strikes would not result in “long-term” military action.
“Anything that happens is going to happen very fast,” Trump said, though he then suggested the US military might “just finish the job”.
He accused Iran of “behaving very badly” and claimed they had launched drones and a missile at ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran said that the interim ceasefire deal gave it the right to manage traffic passing through the strait.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and key negotiator, wrote on X: “The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.”
Making a statement in the House of Commons on Thursday, Foreign Office minister Hamish Falconer told MPs: “Our priority now is ensuring unimpeded transit passage through the Strait without the threat of violence, tolls, fees or conditions.”
He described Iran’s attacks as a “serious escalation”.
“Strikes into countries in the region and their waters are a clear violation of international law and must stop,” Falconer said.
The collapse of the peace deal led to a sharp rise in oil prices earlier this week, but they were largely steady on Thursday morning.
Brent crude stood at just over 78 dollars (£58) a barrel, having jumped above 80 dollars at one stage on Wednesday, up from 73.88 on Tuesday.
