The United States and Iran have exchanged fresh threats as some of the heaviest fighting in weeks intensified across the Middle East, deepening tensions six months into the conflict.
US President Donald Trump said American forces carried out a “very heavy attack” on Iranian targets overnight, warning that Washington was prepared to launch further strikes whenever necessary.
Iran, however, vowed to respond with a new strategy aimed at countering the United States on the battlefield, diplomatically and economically.
Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei said Iran had adopted a “new strategy” in the conflict.
“You will soon see that Iran’s new strategy on the battlefield, in diplomacy and in confronting the economic blockade will shatter your foundations,” Rezaei wrote on X.
The latest escalation comes as Washington moves to increase economic pressure on Tehran and its allies.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the administration’s planned expansion of sanctions against Iran’s economic partners would deliver “absolutely maximum pressure.”
Trump also sparked attention by joking about renaming the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial global oil shipping route, “Trump Strait.”
“Now that we have it under U.S.A. control, should we change the name Hormuz Strait to TRUMP STRAIT???” Trump wrote on Truth Social, although he later suggested that he was not being serious.
Iran subsequently targeted US military positions in Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region following extensive American strikes on Iranian sites.
The escalation also triggered anger in Tehran after the Iranian Red Crescent said a US strike on a wedding ceremony in southern Iran killed four people, including a child, and injured more than 50 others.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei accused Washington of committing a war crime and said the attack demonstrated what he described as the failure of the US campaign.
The US military did not directly address the reported wedding strike. However, US Central Command spokesman Tim Hawkins said American forces do not target civilians.
Iran Condemns Wedding Strike
Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, strongly criticised Washington over the reported attack, describing the United States as “Satan.”
“If a power acts like Satan, picks targets like Satan, and kills like Satan, it’s Satan,” Ghalibaf wrote on X.
The current round of hostilities began after Washington launched strikes on Iranian targets on Sunday, marking the first known US attacks on Iran in several weeks.
Iranian forces subsequently targeted American troops in Jordan and the UAE, while projectiles also struck two oil tankers in separate incidents. A Saudi shipping company said two Filipino sailors were killed in one of the attacks.
Trump said the US strikes were carried out in response to an alleged Iranian attempt to deploy sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz and missile attacks on a US base in Jordan.
The renewed violence has raised concern among Iranians, with some calling for both sides to return to negotiations.
“I hope they all return to the negotiating table because the only people suffering from this are the Iranian people,” said Hossein Moazami, a 50-year-old self-employed Iranian.
The conflict began on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on Iran that killed its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
A fragile ceasefire later collapsed following attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies previously passed.
Meanwhile, Israel has warned that it would respond forcefully if attacked by Iran during the Jewish high holiday season, which begins in mid-September.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said his country was prepared to respond “with great force” if Iran launched attacks against Israel.
“For now, they are striking throughout the region except us,” Katz said at a conference hosted by Israeli media organisations.
The latest escalation has intensified concerns over the possibility of a wider regional conflict, as Washington, Tehran and their allies continue to exchange threats and military strikes.
