'We’re going to hit them hard tonight': Trump signals further strikes on Iran

US President Donald Trump has said the United States will carry out further strikes on Iran tonight. “We hit them very hard last night … we’re probably going to hit them hard again tonight,” he tells reporters during a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “I’ll give them a little warning, we’re going to hit them hard tonight.”

US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was "over" Wednesday but left the door open to more talks, after fighting flared sparked by Iranian attacks on ships in the vital Strait of Hormuz. The strategic shipping route remains a flashpoint in the conflict, which began in late February with massive US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Oil prices soared and stock markets slid Wednesday after US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was over, following renewed strikes in the Middle East.

The latest bout of fighting was sparked by Iranian attacks on ships in the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route. Trump said at a NATO summit in Turkey the ceasefire was "over" but left the door open to more talks. International benchmark Brent North Sea crude jumped more than five percent to around $78 a barrel. The main US contract, West Texas Intermediate, also rallied five percent. In Europe, Paris and Frankfurt shed around two percent while London was down nearly 1.5 percent around midday. "Geopolitical risks are rising" for markets, noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB. 

Tehran insists on controlling the waterway, saying it will charge fees for passage and threatening to hit vessels that deviate from its authorised route. Its military has struck at least three ships in recent days, prompting extensive US strikes against Iranian targets Tuesday followed by retaliatory attacks from Iran on Gulf countries.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's over," Trump said at a NATO summit in Turkey on Wednesday when asked if the truce was intact. "It's just a waste of time dealing with them," he added. "I'll let our wonderful negotiators keep talking if they want, but I don't see it. I don't like these people." 

Oil prices immediately jumped five percent after Trump's remarks, having already reached their highest level in two weeks.

- Multiple strikes, both sides -

Both sides reported hitting dozens of targets, placing fresh strain on their interim deal to end the Middle East war.

Iranian state media on Wednesday reported a wave of explosions around the strait, including six on the island of Qeshm, seven in the city of Sirik and more in the major port city of Bandar Abbas.

It later reported a series of blasts in the coastal city of Bushehr, which hosts the country's only civilian nuclear power plant and lies near Kharg island, the main oil terminal through which 90 percent of Iran's crude exports transit.

State media said a member of the military's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) had been killed, while the foreign ministry said monitoring and observation sites had been hit on the southern coast.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces had struck over 80 targets, including Iranian air-defence systems, coastal radar sites and 60 IRGC small boats.

The strikes aimed "to degrade Iran's ability to continue attacking international commerce flowing through the international trade corridor", it said.

- 'Anxious' -

Tehran's reply came quickly, with the Guards saying they hit dozens of US military facilities in American allies Kuwait and Bahrain, where an AFP journalist heard blasts.

Kuwait said it intercepted two ballistic missiles and 13 drones, while the Iranian army said it had also attacked US forces at Sheikh Isa air base in Bahrain.

"I had gone to bed a bit late, but the air-raid sirens woke me up, leaving me feeling anxious," said Nawal Saad, a Bahraini civil servant in her forties.

She lamented that "the spectre of war is looming once more", saying "I do not want to go through that experience of fear and anxiety again".

Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused the United States of "major" breaches of their memorandum of understanding signed last month, including by reinstating oil sanctions.

Washington on Tuesday revoked sanction waivers on Iranian oil sales, cancelling a licence announced in June that had allowed Iran to produce, sell and deliver crude oil and related products until August 21.

"Iran's actions in the strait were wholly unacceptable to the United States and will be met with consequences," a US official told AFP.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the memorandum of understanding was "entirely performance-based", warning that Tehran would see benefits only if it showed "good behaviour".

Mark Rutte, secretary general of NATO, said at the summit in Ankara that the US strikes were "absolutely necessary".

- Hormuz attacks -

Iran has struck several ships transiting Hormuz in recent days, accusing them of not following its authorised route.

British maritime security agency UKMTO said Tuesday that an "unknown projectile" had hit one tanker and sparked a fire, before two more vessels were struck, at least one by a drone.

All three vessels were struck close to Oman, which had proposed a temporary transit corridor hugging its coastline -- an initiative opposed by Iran as it seeks to impose fees on ships using the narrow waterway.

Previously, maritime traffic had tentatively resumed after Washington and Tehran signed the deal last month, but Iran has insisted there will be no return to pre-war arrangements, under which vessels could pass freely through the strait.

"We are now in a sensitive period where potential alternatives to an Iranian toll or fee system are being explored," Andreas Krieg, a security expert at King's College London, told AFP. "Iran is sending a clear signal that no alternative will be accepted." 

China warns US, Iran against 'reigniting' war

China denounced on Wednesday a sharp escalation in hostilities in the Middle East after the United States struck dozens of targets in Iran, with Beijing's foreign ministry warning both sides against "reigniting" the war in the Middle East.

"Reigniting the war is not in the interests of either side, and military means cannot solve the fundamental problems," foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a news conference, when asked about the strikes.

Mediator Qatar calls for de-escalation

Qatar on Wednesday condemned strikes carried out by Iran against Kuwait and Bahrain and called for diplomacy, as hostilities resumed following attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

 Qatar, a key intermediary in talks between Iran and the United States, said it "emphasises the need to spare the region the consequences of these unjustified attacks", in a foreign ministry statement posted on X.

 Doha also emphasised the need to "pursue the path of dialogue and diplomacy, to de-escalate tensions, and to build upon the progress achieved under the memorandum of understanding".