Iranian strike hits Chinese firm’s building
An Iranian strike hit a Chinese firm’s building in northern Kuwait on Thursday morning, severely damaging the structure and killing a worker, Kuwait’s military said, hours after Jordan’s air defences shot down five missiles launched from Iran.
The attacks came after the US military said it had completed “a heavy wave of strikes against Iran,” conducted in response to an earlier Iranian missile attack on a US base in Jordan.
Central Command said in a social media post that the US had struck “dozens” of targets belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, including military command centres as well as missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance and defence sites. No casualties were reported from Jordan’s interception of the missiles, Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency said, quoting the spokesman for the country’s armed forces.
The flare-ups on multiple fronts after several days of relative calm raised the risk of a return to all-out war. It also underscored the difficulty of winding down a five-month conflict that has jolted the world economy and is unpopular among Americans. The fighting was likely to add to concerns that the US is further drawing down already diminished stockpiles of sophisticated munitions needed to defend its bases and allies.
US strikes Iran
The US Central Command said in a social media post that the United States had struck “dozens” of targets belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, including military command centres as well as missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance and defence sites. The new strikes came hours after US President Donald Trump vowed to hit Iran “very hard” after it targeted a base in Jordan that hosts US troops.
Iran’s official IRNA news agency said three people were killed and two were wounded in a strike on the island of Qeshm, which lies just off the Iranian mainland in the Strait of Hormuz. The latest barrage came after the US partnered with Saudi Arabia to strike Iran-backed militias in neighbouring Iraq, killing at least 20 fighters and six Iranian advisers on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, British maritime security firm Ambrey said drone strikes ignited fires on two natural gas vessels at the Egyptian port of Damietta on Wednesday. It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the strikes on a US-owned floating storage facility and a Greek-owned tanker. No injuries were reported. The office of the Egyptian prime minister said initial investigations showed the fires on the two vessels had been caused by a drone.
Egypt, a close US ally and regional mediator, is one of the only countries in the Middle East to have been spared direct military action during the war. A strike by Iran or its allies, if confirmed, would mark a significant widening of the conflict. Asked during an Oval Office event if Iran was responsible for the strikes on the natural gas vessels, Trump responded: “It’s a little more of the same.” “In the meantime, we’re going to be hitting them very hard because it’s our turn to hit them,” he added.
Saudi accuses Iraq militias of targeting its oil facilities
Saudi Arabia had accused the Iraqi militias of firing drones against its oil facilities over the past days. An umbrella group of Iraqi militias initially denied the allegations, while another Iran-backed group - the Houthi rebels in Yemen - said they had attacked Saudi energy facilities as part of a separate but related conflict. Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman met separately on Wednesday with Trump and Vice President JD Vance, according to two people familiar with the matter who were not authorised to comment publicly about the private meetings. Before the latest eruption, mediators had expressed optimism about bringing the US and Iran back to the negotiating table. An interim agreement collapsed in recent weeks over renewed fighting in the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global energy supplies that Iranian attacks have again effectively closed.
A regional official said mediators are “still trying with both sides” to restore calm and get the ceasefire back on track. He gave no details on whether progress was being made and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Jordanian air defences shoot down 5 missiles
Cairo: Jordan’s air defences shot down five missiles launched from Iran Thursday morning, the spokesman for the country’s armed forces said, according to Jordan’s state-run Petra news agency. The news agency said no casualties were reported.
The interceptions come after the US military said it had completed “a heavy wave of strikes against Iran,” conducted in response to an earlier Iranian missile attack on a US base in Jordan. Central Command said in a social media post that for over two hours the US had struck “dozens” of targets belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, including military command centres as well as missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance and defense sites.