New Delhi, Sept. 2 -- The US-Iran conflict intensified on Wednesday after fresh American strikes on Iranian targets triggered missile and drone attacks by Tehran against US interests across the Gulf.
Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned that the country's armed forces had "unforgettable lessons" in store for the United States. Iranian officials strongly condemned the US strikes, with an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) spokesperson warning that Washington would regret its actions. Another Iranian military spokesperson said attacks on US forces would continue until the United States "regret their crimes".
The latest US strikes reportedly killed at least 11 people in Iran. Among those killed were four people, including a child, after an American missile struck a residential home in Kuhestak in southern Iran's Sirik area, where a wedding celebration was taking place. Around 50 people were injured in the attack, according to Iranian reports.
The US military said its strikes targeted IRGC facilities, including air defence sites, radar systems, maritime assets, mine-laying capabilities and communications infrastructure. Washington said the action followed attempted attacks by the IRGC on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against US service members in the region. The US military denied targeting civilians, with a US Central Command spokesperson saying American forces do not target civilians and maintaining that the strikes were linked to attacks involving commercial shipping and US personnel.
Iran responded with missile and drone attacks targeting American interests in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan. The IRGC said it launched a ballistic missile attack on Camp Titin, a US Marine Corps base in Jordan, and also claimed attacks on US bases in Erbil, Iraq, and the UAE. Jordan said its air-defence systems intercepted at least 10 of 13 ballistic missiles fired from Iran. The remaining three landed in remote areas, with no confirmed casualties or significant damage reported at the targeted US facility.
US President Donald Trump warned Iran against retaliating, saying Tehran would face a much stronger response if it continued attacking American interests. Trump also claimed that the US had almost total control over the Strait of Hormuz and said Iran's economy was collapsing under US sanctions. The strategic waterway has emerged as a major flashpoint in the conflict, with Iran keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed while the US continues its counter-blockade of Iranian ports. Preliminary shipping data showed that only four commodity vessels crossed the waterway on Tuesday, well below the recent average.
Two oil supertankers were also reportedly struck by unidentified projectiles while travelling through the Strait, raising further concerns over the safety of commercial shipping and the potential impact on global energy supplies. Iran's Armed Forces Central Headquarters has vowed further attacks against US forces, warning that American losses would increase if Washington continued its military operations.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.