Trump says US will hit Iran “very hard” tonight, finally seizing Kharg Island as war rages

On Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the latest US strikes in the country, saying the strikes had rendered the nearly two-month ceasefire “meaningless.”

In a statement, the Department said “the illegal and criminal attack carried out by the United States in recent hours is not only a violation of strict laws …

It added that “responsibility for the worst consequences of this criminal act rests with the leaders of the United States.”

President Trump said earlier Thursday that the U.S. military “will be taking over” a key Iranian island in the northern Persian Gulf and other oil infrastructure in the “not too distant future.”

He said this in a Truth Social post after another exchange of strikes overnight, in which US forces hit Iranian infrastructure – including a water storage facility, according to Iranian officials – in a new attack overnight. Iran responded by firing missiles and drones at several Persian Gulf states where US forces are stationed.

“The United States will be hitting Iran (Its Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of defense, as well as most of its offensive capabilities, ARE!), VERY MUCH AT NIGHT,” said Mr. Trump in his post on Thursday. “In the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Islandand other oil infrastructure areas, and fully control their oil and gas markets, as we have with Venezuela, which serves Venezuela and the United States of America very well.”

US forces shot down an oil tanker Wednesday in the Gulf of Oman “for attempting to transport Iranian oil,” according to Central Command, the third commercial vessel targeted this week.

CENTCOM said in a statement to X that it struck Guinea-Bissau and struck the engine room of the M/T Jalveer with two Hellfire missiles “after the crew repeatedly failed to follow the instructions of the US military.”

US forces also attacked Palau-flagged oil tankers M/T Marivex and M/T Settebello on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. The Marivex was trying to go to an Iranian port and the Settebello was trying to transport Iranian oil, CENTCOM said.

An Indian official said on Thursday X that three people working in Settebello were killed in strikes. America’s top lawyer in the country has been summoned to hear India’s “strong protest”.

The US has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports since shortly after an agreement to end the war between the two countries was reached in early April. Tuesday’s strike in Settebello appears to be the first time since the start of the war that an American strike has killed merchant seamen.

The Qatari negotiating team returned to meetings in Tehran on Thursday morning, a Qatari official told CBS News. The source said the delegation returned to Doha after the morning meetings in the Iranian capital.

Political efforts, by Qatar and Pakistan, continue despite the US striking Iran on Wednesday and Tehran retaliating with strikes in Kuwait, Bahrain and the US base in Jordan.

The United States had previously held off on strikes while foreign diplomats in Iran worked to broker a deal.

Qatar condemned Iran’s recent missile attacks on Thursday in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, in a statement to X.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said earlier Thursday that the country’s leaders were still involved in efforts to mediate a “negotiated agreement” between Iran and the US.

“It is difficult to be optimistic about this new negotiation,” foreign ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi admitted. But he added: “We have not given up hope, we are still engaged.”

An Iranian cargo ship was hit by US forces in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday morning, the governor of Sirik County in Iran was quoted as saying by the official Iranian news agency Mehr.

The 150-ton cargo boat, which is a type of boat usually made of wood, was carrying important cargo when it was hit five miles from Khasab port, the report said.

Mehr reported, citing the governor, that five members of the boat were rescued by nearby ships and brought ashore in Oman.

The Jordanian military said it intercepted 20 Iranian missiles launched Thursday near Azraq, where the US military base is located.

In a statement, the Jordanian Armed Forces said the plane intercepted the missiles but no injuries or damages were reported due to falling debris.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said earlier in the day it had targeted “Al-Azraq Air Base and its control center, using 12 missiles,” as quoted by the official Tasnim news agency.

The attack comes after the US Central Command announced that it had carried out further strikes against Iranian targets in the early hours of Thursday.

An 11-year-old girl suffered minor injuries after an Iranian airliner was intercepted in Bahrain on Thursday, according to the country’s Interior Ministry.

In a statement posted on social media, the Ministry of Interior said falling debris from an Iranian jet that was intercepted over Bahrain also damaged houses and burned cars in Hamad Town and Manama.

Earlier in the day, Bahrain reported an attack from Iran as Tehran retaliated against US strikes early Thursday. Iran has previously targeted US bases in the country.

An Indian official said on Thursday that three Indian sailors were killed aboard a tank that was targeted by the US military for allegedly violating US-imposed sanctions on Iran.

In a statement sent on social media, the Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways of India, Sarbananda Sonowal, announced the death of the three sailors in the attack on the Palau-flagged vessel Settebello.

“Sadly, three Indian sailors who were first reported missing have now been confirmed dead after two bodies were recovered,” he wrote. It was not clear where the third body was. “This is a great loss to our maritime family,” Sonowal said.

The US military’s Central Command accused Settebello of “violating the ongoing embargo by attempting to transport oil from Iran.”

It fired into the ship’s engine room to stop it.

The powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Thursday it shot down missiles fired at a US military base in Jordan, according to media reports.

This “punishment of the attacker” targeted “Al-Azraq Air Base and its control center, using 12 missiles,” the guards said, as quoted by the Tasnim news agency, and said they destroyed these facilities “and a large number of warplanes.”

Jordan did not acknowledge the attack, although the US Embassy in Amman issued a warning about it.

Iranian missiles targeted several Gulf countries overnight, with incidents also reported in Kuwait and Bahrain.

CBS/AFP

Kuwait and Bahrain both reported incoming strikes early Thursday morning local time.

The Kuwaiti military told X that its “air defense systems” are “intercepting hostile air targets.”

The Ministry of Interior in Bahrain posted on social media that it has activated its emergency alert.

This comes after the US military launched a second round of what US Central Command described as “self-defence” targeting inside Iran.

The US Central Command on Wednesday night denied Iran’s claim that the Strait of Hormuz was closed following a new wave of strikes in the country.

“Commercial vessels continue to enter and exit the Strait of Hormuz tonight,” CENTCOM said on social media.

Traffic on the strait, an important waterway for transporting oil, has fallen sharply since the start of the war. Earlier on Wednesday, President Trump said efforts to help steer ships through the Strait of Hormuz had led to 100 million barrels of oil being moved to the channel as part of a “secret operation.”

Iran’s military said Wednesday night that, following renewed US strikes, the Strait of Hormuz is closed to all traffic, “including oil tankers and commercial vessels. Any such congestion will be directed.”

US forces he started attacking Iran at 5:15 pm ET, in what US Central Command calls “defensive strikes.”

The strikes are “in response to Iran’s continued aggression,” CENTCOM said, and targeted key Iranian facilities such as ammunition depots, control centers and warehouses, according to two US officials familiar with the airstrike.

The strikes came hours after President Trump told reporters, “We’re going to hit them hard again today if you miss it, if you don’t turn on your television set. And we’ll see what happens with the deal. We were – we were really close to a deal, but they keep touching us.”