US renews Iran attacks, Tehran says it closed Strait of Hormuz
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they struck bases in Kuwait and Bahrain after US attacks
The United States launched fresh strikes on Iran overnight as efforts to end the three-month conflict stalled, while Tehran warned it would target any vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz after claiming attacks on ships and US assets in Bahrain and Kuwait. Washington said commercial traffic through the strategic waterway was continuing despite Iran's declaration that the passage had been closed. Follow our live coverage for the latest updates.
Kuwait Airways announces suspension of all flights temporarily due to airspace closure, after authorities shut the country’s skies early Thursday amid escalating regional tensions following Iranian attacks.
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The United States has issued a warning over attacks in Jordan, with reports indicating missiles, drones or rockets in Jordanian airspace.
Authorities urged people to seek overhead cover, shelter in place immediately, remain indoors and follow local announcements and alerts.
The US Embassy in Jordan said it would continue to monitor the situation and provide further updates as needed.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday it had fired ballistic missiles at a US command centre in Jordan, according to state media.
This "punitive operation against the aggressor" targeted "Al-Azraq Air Base and its control center, using 12 ballistic missiles", the Guards said, as quoted by the Tasnim news agency, claiming to have destroyed these facilities "and a large number of fighter aircraft".
Kuwait's Directorate General of Civil Aviation said it had temporarily closed the country's airspace from 4.50am on Thursday and diverted flights to alternative airports as a precaution to ensure the safety of air navigation and passengers.
The move came amid escalating regional tensions following what Kuwait described as Iranian aggression. Authorities said they were closely monitoring the situation in coordination with relevant agencies and would reopen the airspace once the risks had subsided. Passengers and airlines were urged to follow official updates and comply with instructions issued by the aviation authority.
The Kuwaiti army said it was dealing with ongoing missile and drone attacks. Authorities urged the public to follow security and safety instructions issued by the relevant agencies and to rely on official sources for updates.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday that they had struck bases in Kuwait and Bahrain in response to the latest US strikes.
"During two waves of operations, eighteen important targets belonging to the US Army in the bases of Ali and Ahmad Ahmad Air Force (were hit)," the Guards said in a statement quoted by state-run IRNA, adding that they also "hit and destroyed Sheikh Isa air bases".
Iranian media earlier reported that Iran had attacked the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
Lebanon’s Ministry of Health said the death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon since 3rd March had risen to 3,696 by Wednesday, with 11,413 others injured.
Iranian media reported on Thursday that Iran had attacked the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, after US strikes on its territory.
"In this wave of army drone strikes, communication antennas and radar facilities of the Patriot system of the 5th Fleet were targeted," the Mehr and Fars news agencies posted on Telegram.
An air raid alert was issued in Bahrain and residents have been urged to "remain calm and head to the nearest safe place" the Gulf country's interior ministry said on X.
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday evening that Iranian leaders telephoned him directly and asked him to stop a bombing wave that was under way, Fox News reported.
Trump told Fox News in an interview that US forces had hit Iran with 49 Tomahawk missiles in its latest bombing raid early Thursday Iran time.
If Iran does not accept US terms for ending the war, "we'll bomb the S- out of them tomorrow night," Trump said, according to Fox News reporter Trey Yingst.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards however quickly denied that Tehran had asked Trump to halt the bombing, the IRNA state news agency reported.
"Trump's claim that Iranian officials have contacted him is strongly denied and is a cover for escaping war," the Guards said.
The US Central Command has confirmed that Iran did not close the Strait of Hormuz, and zero US warships were struck, in a counterpoint to IRGC claims. "Commercial ships are continuing to transit in and out of the Strait of Hormuz tonight.
Sirens sounded across Bahrain early on Thursday after authorities issued a security alert, the state-run Bahrain News Agency reported, citing the Interior Ministry.
Officials urged the public to follow safety instructions as authorities monitored the situation. The brief warning comes amid heightened regional tensions in the Gulf, where countries have periodically activated civil defence systems in response to missile threats, drone activity, or wider instability linked to conflicts in the Middle East.
There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. Authorities said further information would be released once verified. Bahrain hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
President Donald Trump renewed threats against Iran and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), signalling renewed US military strikes as tensions between Washington and Tehran continue to escalate.
"We hit them hard yesterday and we're going to hit them again hard today," Trump said, referring to recent US military operations against Iranian-linked targets.
The president also expressed frustration over stalled negotiations with Tehran, claiming the two sides had been close to reaching an agreement before talks broke down.
"We were really close to a deal — but they keep tapping us along. They keep playing us for suckers because, you know what? They dealt with some very stupid Presidents," Trump said.
The remarks came less than a day after the United States launched what officials described as retaliatory strikes following the reported downing of a US Army AH-64 Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most strategically important maritime corridors.
Trump's comments were followed by reports of blasts in Bandar Abbas and several other sites in Iran, marking a sustained pressure campaign combining military action with diplomatic demands aimed at forcing Tehran back to the negotiating table.
Iran has announced the "closure" of the Strait of Hormuz to all ships and oil tankers as tensions in the region flared following Iran’s downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter on Monday during a patrol in the region.
Tensions between the US and Iran have intensified in recent days amid broader regional conflict, including efforts to enforce blockades, protect commercial shipping and counter Iranian-backed actions. Iran has denied responsibility for unprovoked attacks and accused the US of aggression, while the US has described its operations as proportional and defensive.
The US military has launched new attacks on multiple targets in Iran.
Iranian state media reported "naval clashes" between Iranian and US forces south of Iran, near the Hormuz Strait.
The reports did not provide further details on the scale of the confrontation or any casualties.
Explosions were heard in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island, Minab, Sirik, Kargan as US launches new attacks on multiple targets in Iran.
US Central Command forces began "additional self-defence strikes" against multiple targets in Iran late on Wednesday and into Thursday at the direction of US President Donald Trump, the military said, amid escalating hostilities sparked by the downing of a US Army Apache helicopter.
The strikes started at 5:15 p.m. ET (1:15 AM Gulf Standard Time on Thursday), according to a CENTCOM statement posted on X. They come in response to “Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression,” the command said.
The latest action follows U.S. strikes on Tuesday that targeted Iranian air defence, ground control stations and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz. Those earlier strikes were a direct response to Iran’s downing of a US Apache helicopter on Monday during a patrol in the region.
US War Secretary Pete Hegseth, who just walked out of the US Central Command Headquarters in Florida, said the US military will be "busy tonight" because of fresh Iran strikes. "Central Command will be busy tonight because President Trump said we will be hitting Iran hard — and we will be!" "They've been 'tap, tap, tapping' on the deal? Instead, they're gonna have tap, tap, tap, bombs dropping on key facilities from the United States of America."
Hundreds of people rallied on Wednesday evening in Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, in support of Iran and its allies in the Middle East war, AFP correspondents said.
The rally came despite the ongoing war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah, with Israel pounding south and east Lebanon daily and still occasionally striking Beirut's southern suburbs, known locally as Dahiyeh, most recently on Sunday.
Some held images of Iranian leaders, including the current supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, and his father and predecessor Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US-Israeli strikes on February 28 at the start of the Middle East war.
Lana Nusseibeh, Minister of State, received His Excellency Javier Colomina, NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, and the NATO Secretary General’s Special Representative for the Southern Neighbourhood.
Her Colomina’s visit followed a productive phone call in March between UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, as well as a series of discussions between senior officials from the UAE and NATO on ways to deepen and strengthen cooperation.
During their meeting in Abu Dhabi, the two sides discussed the evolving geopolitical landscape in Europe and the Middle East, underscoring a shared interest in advancing cooperation to enhance the resilience, flexibility, and sustainability of defense supply chains with trusted partners, strengthen interoperability, and explore new areas of collaboration.
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