Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Thursday it launched a missile strike targeting the US command-and-control centre in West Asia and the Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan. In a statement carried by Fars News Agency, the IRGC said its Aerospace Force fired 10 ballistic missiles targeting the two sites, claiming the attack "destroyed" the two facilities.
New fighting erupted between the United States and Iran hours ahead of the burial of longtime supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Thursday, with Tehran targeting US allies in the region and American strikes hitting the perimeter of an Iranian nuclear power plant.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply since Wednesday, especially through the UN-backed Omani route, analysts said, after vessels were attacked earlier this week and as the United States and Iran traded renewed strikes. Flows through the strategic waterway reached their highest levels since the start of the war after a truce was agreed between the two sides in mid-June, although they remained at around a third of peacetime levels.
The only day with less traffic since the US-Iran truce was on June 28, when just 19 commodities vessels crossed a day after a tanker was attacked off Oman. US President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire over on Wednesday but left the door open to more talks, and analysts said that the path to lasting peace was never going to be straightforward.
Most ships crossing since Wednesday either switched off their transponders or used the northern Iranian route, which requires Iranian approval to transit. The southern Omani route, used in past weeks by many vessels not linked to Iran, has been largely avoided since Wednesday. So far on Thursday, no ships had crossed using that route, according to ship tracks visible on MarineTraffic.
The website only shows vessels with transponders switched on, so it is possible that more may have crossed with their signals switched off.
Iran has said it opposes the route and two of the three vessels it attacked between Monday and Tuesday were near it when they were hit. In total, five ships have been attacked since the memorandum of understanding was signed by Washington and Tehran. The head of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Arsenio Dominguez, urged shipowners and operators on Wednesday to avoid exposing 6,000 seafarers still stranded in the Gulf to unnecessary danger by transiting the strait.
The renewed hostilities, triggered by tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, sparked concerns of a return to full-scale war after an April ceasefire and a June US-Iran accord ended five weeks of conflict.
This was the second day in a row that the decades-old foes exchanged attacks, with Iranian officials reporting the US attacks had killed 17 people.
The Islamic republic said it had resumed its attacks targeting US assets in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, while sirens blared in Jordan -- another US ally -- where the military said it had intercepted eight missiles launched from Iran.
The fighting came with Iran preparing to bury Khamenei, who was killed alongside close family members on the first day of the US-Israeli war against Iran on February 28.
The last of a marathon six days of funeral ceremonies, Khamenei's burial on Thursday in his hometown of Mashhad will be closely watched for signs of his son Mojtaba Khamenei, who has yet to appear in public since being appointed.
Crowds of men and women clad in black, many urging vengeance, were already massing against the backdrop of slogans including "there will be blood", AFP correspondents said.
- 'Effort to overshadow' -
The United States targeted the perimeter of Iran's only civilian nuclear plant with a strike on Thursday, Iranian state media reported, citing the deputy governor of Bushehr province.
The Iranian foreign ministry said the US attacks targeted civilian infrastructure, including railway bridges, and described the strikes as a "gross war crime".
US military officials said Thursday's strikes hit approximately 90 Iranian military targets, including air defence systems, missile and drone storage sites.
Iran's army said it had targeted a Patriot missile interceptor system in Kuwait, an early warning system in Qatar and fuel tanks in Bahrain with drones, as part of its attacks on US bases in the region.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards accused the United States of an "effort to overshadow" Khamenei's funeral with its attacks on the railway bridges, which led to the suspension of rail services.
After funeral ceremonies in Tehran, the clerical hub of Qom and Iraq's holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, a plane carrying the coffin of Khamenei landed in Mashhad on Thursday morning.
The farewells to Khamenei, who ruled Iran for more than three and a half decades, have offered some insights into the shape of the new leadership who have sought to put on a united front between political and military figures.
- 'Incredibly fragile' -
But there has so far been no sign of Mojtaba Khamenei, who has communicated only through written statements since being named and, according to officials, was wounded in the February 28 airstrikes.
In a sign of the security tensions, at least one fighter jet escorted the plane carrying Khamenei's coffin to its final burial in Mashhad, footage from the supreme leader's website showed.
Meanwhile US President Donald Trump used his old Air Force One plane to leave Turkey after a NATO summit instead of his new Qatari-gifted jet, a move the New York Times described as a security precaution in the current context.
The Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil and gas corridor, remains a key point of contention, with Tehran insisting on control of the waterway despite it being open to free passage before the war began.
Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was "over", but left the door open to more talks while describing the Iranian side as "sort of crazy".
Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned on X that "if you strike, you will be struck".
The Iranian military struck at least three ships in recent days, prompting extensive US strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday.
The accord last month to end the war "looks incredibly fragile" but "neither Tehran nor Washington have better options ahead besides the diplomatic track", said Ellie Geranmayeh of the European Council on Foreign Relations.
Earlier, Sirens blared in Jordan on Thursday, hours after Iran's military said it had targeted sites in Gulf countries in retaliation for US strikes, while a number of explosions were heard in Iran’s Bushehr province.
State broadcaster Al-Mamlaka added: "Alarm sirens sounded in Jordan on Thursday to alert citizens and urge them to follow instructions."
Several explosions were heard in Iran's Bushehr province, home to Iran's only civilian nuclear power plant, the Fars news agency reported, hours after the United States launched strikes on the Islamic republic.
Residents of Choghadak, around 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the plant, reported hearing the blasts, but "official news about the exact location of the explosions has not yet been released", Fars said. Strikes have previously landed near the power station during the Middle East war.
Iran hits military bases in Kuwait, Bahrain
The United States and Iran traded strikes on Thursday for the second day running as Iran's Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said they had struck US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait in response to fresh American strikes.
In a statement carried by state television IRIB. the Guards said they struck "key infrastructure and facilities" at US bases in Arifjan and Ali Al Salem in Kuwait, and Juffair and Sheikh Isa in Bahrain with missiles and drones.
The Guards also warned their responses would expand to other bases across the region if US attacks were repeated.
Explosions were heard in Bahrain's capital on Thursday, an AFP correspondent in Manama said, moments after authorities sounded air raid sirens to warn of an attack.
The blasts followed a vow from Iran's Revolutionary Guards that they would "give a devastating response" to fresh American strikes on the Islamic republic's territory.
Kuwait's air defences were also intercepted "hostile missile and drone attacks", its military said on Thursday.
"The General Staff of the Army notes that any explosions heard are a result of air defence systems intercepting hostile attacks," the Kuwait military said in a post on X, without specifying their origin.
Hormuz to open only under 'Iranian arrangements'
Iran's chief negotiator said Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened only under "Iranian arrangements", after Tehran and Washington traded strikes in the Middle East.
"The United States still has not learned that bullying and breaking its promises no longer come without consequences," Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X. "Let me be clear: If you strike, you will be struck."
Latest strikes hit 90 military targets in Iran
US military officials said Wednesday that approximately 90 Iranian military targets were hit in their latest strikes, targeting air defense systems, missile and drone storage sites, and other assets.
The United States "completed an additional round of strikes against Iran, July 8, to further degrade Iran's ability to attack commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz," according to a statement posted to X by US Central Command (CENTCOM).
14 Iranians killed, 78 injured in two days of US strikes
Two days of US strikes against Iran have killed 14 people and left 78 injured, Tehran's health ministry said on Thursday.
"Of the injured, 47 are still hospitalised and the rest have been discharged after receiving medical care," Hossein Kermanpour, the ministry's head of public relations posted on X.
Meanwhile, the train service between Tehran and Mashhad has been suspended after US strikes, state TV reported on Thursday, hours before late supreme leader Ali Khamenei was due to be buried in the eastern Iranian holy city.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Railways blamed "a criminal attack by the US-Israeli enemy" on the route and said it had dispatched repair teams, the state broadcaster reported, adding that road transport was being arranged for stranded passengers.
Earlier, Iran's Revolutionary Guards accused the United States of targeting "two bridges in the eastern provinces leading toward Mashhad in an effort to overshadow" Khamenei's funeral, state TV said.
The burial in Mashhad, Khamenei's hometown, will be the final act of a multi-day funeral, after Iran's leader for more than three decades lay in state in Tehran before being processed through the Iranian capital and the holy Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala.
Khamenei was killed in the US-Israeli strikes on February 28 that began the Middle East war.
While Washington and Tehran have agreed a ceasefire and a memorandum of understanding towards a long-term peace deal, Thursday marked the second night in a row in which the two sides exchanged fire.
US Central Command said it had hit around 90 military targets, while the Revolutionary Guards said they had hit back against US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.
Earlier, President Donald Trump ordered new strikes on Iran on Wednesday and warned of "much worse" if Tehran continues to attack vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the vital oil shipping channel.
Iran state media reported explosions in multiple locations along the southern Iranian coast after US Central Command announced a new wave of strikes.
Warplanes were heard over Kish Island and explosions rocked the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Konarak and Chabahar, part of which lost electricity, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported.
"This is in retribution for yesterday's bombing of ships by Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "If it happens again, it will get much worse!"
While ordering retaliation against Tehran, the US president said earlier Wednesday that he expected the latest military flare-up to end quickly and left the door open to more talks.
CENTCOM said the strikes were carried out to degrade the ability of Iranian forces "to threaten freedom of navigation" in the strait, through which a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas normally flows.
"The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping," CENTCOM said on X.
On X, Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said, "The aggressor enemy and its accomplices will be severely punished."
Before ordering the latest strikes, Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was over, prompting mediators Pakistan and Qatar and the United Nations to call for de-escalation.
Late on Wednesday while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump claimed that the Iranian side had "called a little while ago," and that they wanted "to make a deal so badly."
Trump did not provide further details of the call -- including who was on the line -- but went on to cast doubt over the value of any deal, calling the Iranians "sort of crazy."
The latest strikes come just ahead of the Thursday burial of Ali Khamenei, Iran's former supreme leader, who was killed at the outbreak of the war on February 28.
Since the attacks, Tehran has insisted on controlling the strait, saying it will charge fees for passage and threatening to hit vessels that deviate from its authorised route.
Its military struck at least three ships in recent days, prompting extensive US strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday, followed by retaliatory attacks from Iran on Gulf countries.
"We're gonna hit 'em hard tonight," Trump said at a NATO summit in Ankara. "They violate the agreement every day."
He added later, however, that "anything that happens is going to be over very quickly."
Oil prices jumped eight percent after Trump's earlier comments that the ceasefire was "over."
- 'Maximum restraint' -
UN chief Antonio Guterres called meanwhile "on all parties to exercise maximum restraint" -- as did Pakistan, a key mediator in the US-Iran talks.
Iran said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Qatar's prime minister had spoken over the phone on Wednesday and "underscored the importance of using diplomatic means to resolve regional issues."
Both the United States and Iran said they had hit dozens of targets in the initial wave of attacks, which Iranian state television said had killed eight Iranian military personnel.
CENTCOM said its forces struck more than 80 targets on Tuesday, including Iranian air-defence systems, coastal radar sites and 60 Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps small boats.
The Guards said they hit dozens of US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain.
Kuwait said it had 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.
The latest attacks launched by Iran did not result in any American casualties or cause major damage to facilities, a US military official said on Wednesday.
"All missiles and drones fired by Iran were intercepted or failed to cause major damage," the official told AFP.
Nawal Saad, a Bahraini civil servant, 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."
- Seafarers stranded -
Oman, which sits on the other side of Hormuz from Iran, condemned the targeting of Bahrain and Kuwait as well as the strikes on ships, but without blaming Iran.
The former mediator has not blamed Iran for attacks throughout the war, in an effort to maintain its neutrality, which is being tested by talks with Tehran over the administration of Hormuz.
Washington wants free passage for ships while Iran is insisting on fees and has refused to allow vessels to pass through Omani waters.
All three vessels recently struck were sailing close to Oman, which had proposed a temporary transit corridor hugging its coastline.
Maritime traffic had tentatively resumed after Washington and Tehran signed the deal to end hostilities last month.
But almost 6,000 seafarers remain stranded in the area, International Maritime Organisation chief Arsenio Dominguez said Wednesday.