Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
The United States launched fresh airstrikes across Iran early Thursday, and Tehran responded by targeting Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, in an escalation that again put an interim deal meant to help end the war in the Persian Gulf under strain. The strikes came hours after US President Donald Trump said recent Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz signalled the end of the fragile ceasefire.
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The latest exchange followed US strikes early Wednesday on military sites and port facilities in Iran after Tehran targeted several merchant vessels off the coast of Oman. Thursday’s attacks appeared more widespread, with sirens sounding at least twice in Bahrain, which hosts the US Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters. There was no immediate word of damage in Bahrain, Kuwait or Qatar. Kuwait’s military said it was actively intercepting incoming drones and missiles, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait.
The US military’s Central Command said it struck about 90 targets across Iran and released black-and-white footage that appeared to show attacks on an airport runway and missile launchers. “US forces remain vigilant, lethal, and prepared to execute operations directed by the Commander in Chief,” it said. The US said the strikes were intended to “further degrade” Iran’s ability “to threaten freedom of navigation” in the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil and natural gas had passed before the war began with US and Israeli attacks on February 28.
Iranian state media reported explosions in several places, including Bushehr, home to Iran’s nuclear power plant complex, and the southern port cities of Chabahar, Konarak, Bandar Abbas and Sirik. In Iranshahr, authorities said a strike killed a firefighter at an airport. For the first time since April, the strikes also appeared to hit bridges. State media reported a strike on a railway bridge in Iran’s northeastern Golestan province, while the Revolutionary Guard said two bridges were attacked on the route to Mashhad, where officials plan to bury the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday. It was not clear if the Golestan strike was one of the attacks mentioned by the Guard.
After leaving a NATO summit in Turkiye, Trump posted several videos on social media that he said showed explosions in Iran and issued another warning. “This is in retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will get much worse!” he wrote. Earlier, he had said the latest fighting would not lead to “long-term” military action, adding, “Anything that happens is going to happen very fast,” though he also suggested the US military might “just finish the job.” Trump also repeated threats to hit Iran’s civilian infrastructure, including electric plants and desalinisation plants, and to seize the oil-production hub of Kharg Island.
After three tankers were hit on Tuesday, the US launched strikes on Iran, and Iranian forces retaliated by targeting American military sites in the Persian Gulf. Iran has said the interim ceasefire deal gives it the right to manage traffic through the strait. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a key negotiator in talks aimed at a permanent end to the war, wrote on X on Thursday morning: “America still hasn’t learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost-free. Let me put it plainly: if you strike, you’ll get hit.”
Trump added to concerns that the war could restart by saying the agreement to pause fighting was “over”, though he said negotiations could continue. Oil prices rose after his remarks amid fears that any renewed conflict could spread across the wider Middle East and again disrupt energy shipments through the strait. “For me, I think it’s over,” Trump said when asked about the ceasefire. He added that US representatives could continue talks, but said, “They can talk, but I think they’re wasting their time.” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi replied on X that Trump’s remarks “are not a sign of power but an admission of the failure” of US policy towards Iran.
Trump has also renewed earlier threats to seize Kharg Island, through which about 90 per cent of Iranian oil exports pass. The latest attacks on shipping, despite the negotiations, could point to divisions within Iran’s leadership, with hard-liners seeking lasting control over the waterway and pragmatists pushing for a permanent peace deal to ease sanctions and bring economic relief. Final talks were due to begin after Khamenei’s funeral, which ends Thursday and had been expected to be a period of lower tensions. Those talks are meant to address the most difficult issues, including fully reopening the strait and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear programme.
With PTI Inputs
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
