The United States launched another overnight wave of airstrikes against Iran while reimposing a blockade on Iranian ports, as Tehran expanded its retaliation by targeting American allies across the Middle East and reiterated that the Strait of Hormuz would remain shut "until the US ends its aggression."
Explosions were reported across multiple parts of Iran, including Qeshm Island, Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Chabahar, Konarak, Rask City, Khondab, and the western city of Khorramabad, according to Al Jazeera.
Blasts also struck Ahvaz, where Iran's Mehr News Agency said Shahid Baghaei Hospital was hit during the American attacks, damaging its child cancer treatment department. The hospital, which provides chemotherapy for cancer patients, including children, was subsequently evacuated.
Iranian officials said American strikes also hit an army barracks, killing at least seven troops and leaving hundreds injured nationwide. Tehran has so far reported at least 35 deaths and more than 300 injuries from the US campaign.
State media said air defence systems were activated over Tehran to "counter hostile threats." Earlier reports had also described explosions near southern locations, including Qeshm and Bandar Imam Khomeini, before state media later reported fresh American strikes on Bushehr, home to Iran's only civilian nuclear power plant.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its operations were aimed at Iranian military capabilities that posed a threat to vessels navigating the strategically important waterway. It also confirmed that one of its aircraft engaged and disabled an empty oil tanker attempting to breach the naval blockade imposed on Iran's ports.
According to CENTCOM, the Curacao-flagged M/T Belma was halted after Hellfire missiles were fired into the vessel's smokestack. "The ship is no longer transiting to Iran," it said on X.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded by saying it had targeted the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. Air raid sirens sounded there as attacks directed at civilian areas were intercepted, while Jordan's armed forces announced they had shot down three missiles launched by the Islamic Republic.
The IRGC also claimed it had intercepted and destroyed an "enemy" MQ-9 drone over the southwestern city of Andimeshk, Tasnim news agency reported. The force said the aircraft was brought down by a newly deployed air defence system operated by its aerospace division.
In neighbouring Iraq, Kurdish authorities said the US-led coalition intercepted and destroyed eight explosive-laden drones over Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region. AFP journalists in the city reported hearing explosions and seeing smoke near the US consulate, though no casualties were reported.
As fighting intensified, the US State Department announced that it had "made a determination approving a possible" $1.96bn weapons sale to Saudi Arabia, along with a separate $484m aircraft sustainment package for Kuwait.
The proposed Saudi package includes up to 20,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance sections for both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions, together with warheads, launchers, training, logistical support, and spare parts, the department said.
For Kuwait, the proposal covers sustainment and related equipment for C-17 aircraft, including components, software, maintenance support, training, and logistics services. The package must still undergo congressional review before final approval.
Following the third American wave of strikes within 24 hours, US President Donald Trump said Iran appeared willing to negotiate a peace agreement, although he did not provide further details.
"They don't like what we're doing, and they do want to settle. We'll find out whether or not we settle with them or we just finish it off," he said at a defence summit at the US Army War College in Pennsylvania.
Later, in an interview with Fox News, Trump warned that Iranian power plants and bridges could become targets unless Tehran returned to negotiations, saying, "Next week it gets really bad for them."
Although military operations have escalated, formal mediation efforts between Washington and Tehran have not been abandoned. Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, however, questioned the value of the existing diplomatic framework.
"a memorandum of understanding only has meaning when its clauses are valid and being implemented."
"If Iran is not to derive any benefit from the memorandum of understanding, we have no reason to adhere," he said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Trump said Iran had made a "gesture of goodwill" by releasing an American citizen who had been wrongfully detained in the country since 2024. He did not disclose additional details, but human rights lawyer Jared Genser later identified the detainee in a statement as his client Dena Karari, a US-Iranian citizen who operates a nonprofit organisation and had been charged with espionage.
The Strait of Hormuz remains central to the conflict because of its importance to global oil and gas supplies. Iran closed the strategic waterway after the war began with US-Israeli strikes on February 28, using it as leverage against its adversaries for months.
Although the strait briefly reopened after last month's US-Iran agreement, Tehran declared last week that it would once again remain closed "until the US ends its aggression." Maritime tracker Kpler recorded only 21 transits on Tuesday, while oil prices rose as the latest escalation disrupted one of the world's most significant energy corridors.
The United States has simultaneously reinstated its blockade of Iranian ports, a move reinforced by the strike that stopped the Belma.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the renewed American blockade "has, in a way, dismantled the Islamabad memorandum," referring to the interim agreement reached last month.
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