Al Jazeera

By Enes Abuomer and Zaid Sabah

    Air raid sirens blare in Bahrain as Kuwait reports “hostile missile and drone” attacks after US bombs Iran for a second consecutive night.

    Explosions have been reported in Iranian cities along the Strait of Hormuz, including Bushehr, Chabahar, Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Jask and Abu Musa Island. At least one person is killed in Iranshahr.

    US President Donald Trump says the attacks are in “retribution” for alleged Iranian attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

    Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will be buried in his hometown of Mashhad today, after millions of people attended funeral processions in the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala.

    Israeli forces keep up attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, killing at least eight people in the Palestinian territory and two men in Nabatieh al-Fawqa.

US lawmaker urges Congress to ‘reclaim’ authority to end war in Iran

    US Congresswoman Delia Ramirez has denounced Trump over the US’s strikes on Iran, accusing his administration of escalating the conflict shortly after a ceasefire agreement.

    “Last night, Trump launched a series of strikes on Iran, shortly after establishing a ceasefire deal. And today he is threatening to launch more,” she wrote on X.

    “We cannot rely on warmongers to bring an end to this war. Congress must reclaim our authority and hold the administration accountable!” she added.

    Ramirez’s post came after US Senator Elizabeth Warren also called for the US Congress to halt Trump’s war. The US House of Representatives and the Senate passed a bipartisan War Powers Resolution last month, directing the president to halt military action against Iran unless Congress declares war or authorises the use of military force.

Trump says diplomacy with Iran is ‘a waste of time’

By Kimberly Halkett

Reporting from Washington, DC, US

    The US president is certainly suggesting that diplomacy is off the table.

    Trump is saying, very clearly, that he believed it was a “waste of time”.

    But he left open the possibility that even if he is exasperated with diplomacy, perhaps others on his team are not. He did not rule out that there could be further negotiations involving his envoys Jared Kushner as well as Steve witkoff.

    The US president is saying that he will discuss with them and if he believes there is an avenue to continue, then that will be the course [of action].

    We should point out that Trump hasn’t been involved in direct negotiations.

    He’s also that he no longer believes that even if there was an agreement, that Iran would honour it.

IRGC says US attacks hit bridges on roads leading to Mashhad

    We have more from the IRGC statement.

    It said its attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait were in retaliation for attacks on its southern coastal provinces as well as on “two bridges in the eastern provinces towards the holy city of Mashhad”.

    That city is where Iran’s slain Supreme Leader Khamenei will be buried later today.

    The IRGC said the US attacks were aimed at overshadowing the “historic” funeral ceremony.

    It also warned that if the US repeats its attacks, Iran’s “crushing responses would be expanded to include other American bases in the region”.

    Earlier, the IRIB reported that US forces had fired seven missiles at the Aq Tekeh Khan Bridge outside the city of Aqqala, causing two explosions on a railway track.

IRGC claims attacks on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain

    Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has claimed attacks on “important infrastructure and facilities” at US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, saying they were hit in the first phase of a “punitive response” to the latest US attacks.

    In a statement carried by the IRIB state broadaster, the IRGC said its naval and aerospace forces carried out a joint missile and drone operation hours after the US attacks.

    The IRGC said the operation targeted Camo Arifjan and Ali Al Salem in Kuwait, as well as Juffair and Sheikh Isa in Bahrain.

Former Trump ally says his Iran strategy ‘feels more like post 9/11 Bush era’ lies

    Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Republican lawmaker, has compared Trump’s justifications for war against Iran with former President George Bush’s rhetoric during the Iraq war.

    “Iran bombed ships going through the Strait of Hormuz so Trump bombs Iran, and oil prices start rising again and the stock market goes down making buying opportunities ripe again,” she wrote on X.

    “Then Trump goes back to saying he bombed Iran because ‘Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.’ Repeats it at least 60 times to the press today. I didn’t realize Iran’s nuclear program was in the Strait of Hormuz controlling oil,” she added.

    “Feels more like post 9/11 Bush era Middle East war lies and war economy politics than any real concern about Iran having a nuclear weapon much like Iraq having weapons of mass destruction. Literally what we voted to end from the Republican Party.”

US trying to ‘limit Iran’s ability’ to control Strait of Hormuz

    Scott Uehlinger, a former senior CIA officer, said that finding an off-ramp from the ongoing US-Iran escalation will be “very difficult”.

    He told Al Jazeera that the US struck Iran partly hoping that Iran would change its calculus over the Strait of Hormuz.

    “The United States tried to make clear through Trump that it was retaliating for Iran’s refusal to cooperate in the Strait of Hormuz. I think Trump was hoping to some degree that perhaps the regime would learn its lesson and go back to the memorandum,” Uehlinger said.

    The analyst added that the US is trying to strip away Iran’s leverage in the Strait of Hormuz.

    “That’s why we’ve seen so many attacks directed at Iran’s ability to attempt to control the straits. Maritime traffic control centres have been destroyed. Missile sites have been destroyed, and fast boats have been destroyed, all in an attempt to further limit Iran’s ability to affect the straits,” he said.

    “I think President Trump hopes that by reducing that ability, or showing the Iranians they do not have that ability, perhaps then they will return to the memorandum of understanding.”

Oil prices edge higher as US strikes Iran

    Oil prices have climbed as new US military action against Iran dampens expectations for a swift resolution to the conflict and the subsequent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Reuters.

    Brent crude futures gained 78 cents, or 1 percent, to reach $78.8 a barrel as of 00:54 GMT. Similarly, US West Texas Intermediate futures (WTI) climbed 74 cents, or 1.01 percent, settling at $74.26 a barrel.

Ghalibaf warns US: ‘Strike, and you will be struck’

    Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has warned the US that “bullying and breaking promises are no longer without cost”.

    “Let me be clear: Strike, and you will be struck,” Ghalibaf wrote in a post on X.

    He also warned against US pressure over the Strait of Hormuz, saying it would only open through “Iranian arrangements”, not “American threats”.

    “Do not flail around pointlessly, or you will sink deeper,” he wrote.

Air raid sirens sound again in Bahrain

    Warning sirens are blaring in Bahrain for the second time this morning.

    The Interior Ministry has instructed people to “remain calm and head to the nearest safe place”.

What kind of response is expected from Iran

By Tohid Asadi

Reporting from Tehran, Iran

    “Await the hard slap from the Iranians”. This is what we’ve just heard from the spokesperson for the Iranian Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Policy and National Security.

    In addition to that, we’ve been witnessing several statements from the Iranian side, both diplomatically and militarily.

    Diplomatically, they are saying – quite contrary to what we hear from the American side – that this is a violation by the Americans of the MoU, not only because of this latest round of strikes, but also because of the continued Israeli strikes on Lebanese territory and the US decision to reimpose oil sanctions on Iran.

    Militarily, they are saying that Iran will take firm action to safeguard its national security and national interests.

    Meanwhile, on several occasions, different officials, most notably from the joint military headquarters of Khatam al-Anbiya, have spoken of promises of retaliation and a “crushing response”. But when it comes to the details of how Iran will articulate and formulate its response, that’s something we’ll have to wait to see as events unfold.

    Khamenei was killed on the first day of the US-Israel war on Iran. The video was released to coincide with his burial.

Gulf braces for Iranian attacks after US bombardment

By Mohamed Vall

Reporting from Doha, Qatar

    A little less than an hour ago, warnings were issued across the region, particularly in Bahrain and Kuwait, but also here in Qatar.

    In Qatar, the alert told people to stay home, stay away from glass windows, and avoid going out until another alert was issued. Soon after, another message was sent saying the danger had passed and that people could return to their normal lives.

    But in Kuwait, the situation was different. The Defence Ministry reported the interception of some drones and missiles, without giving specific details about the targets or whether any impact had taken place.

    People were told to take precautions and informed that any explosions they might hear were the result of those interceptions.

    In Bahrain, the Interior Ministry also sent a similar alert to people, without saying whether there had been any attack coming from Iran.

    Countries across the Gulf region are bracing for possible retaliatory attacks, as often happens whenever there are major US attacks against Iranian targets. Iran says it is attacking the sources of attacks on its territory.

    But in the Gulf, that remains the subject of a lot of contention and anger, with countries saying they are not part of this war.

Iranian lawmaker to US: ‘Wait for the hard slap’

    Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for the Parliament’s National Security Committee, says the country’s supreme leader has taught Iranians not to fear the US.

    He warned of a response to the ongoing attacks, saying in a post on X: “Wait for the hard slap from Iranians.”

US senator says Congress shouldn’t allow Trump to continue war

    Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren has criticised Trump over the ongoing war on Iran, warning that his actions have severe global consequences.

    “Donald Trump’s war with Iran has cost American lives, and jacked up prices on gas and groceries for millions across the globe,” she wrote on X.

    “Congress voted against this war. Congress shouldn’t allow Donald Trump to continue it.”

    Her comments come after both chambers of Congress passed a bipartisan War Powers Resolution last month, directing the president to halt unauthorised military action unless explicitly granted congressional approval.

Qatar issues alert over security threat

    The Qatari Interior Ministry has issued an alert saying that the “security threat level is high” and urging residents to stay at home and in safe places.

Trump continues to ‘double down on his threats’

By Kimberly Halkett

Reporting from Washington, DC, United States

    The US president is continuing to double down on his threats, telling reporters on board Air Force One that the US military will hit Iranian targets 20 times harder than Iran has struck those ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

    And in fact, he said that that will be the ratio moving forward – that whatever Iran hits, the US military will retaliate 20 times harder.

    And so it’s clear from the statements from the US president as well as from his vice president, JD Vance, that what is really critical for the White House is ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open. That is the red line for this White House.

    As we heard from the US vice president in Milwaukee on Wednesday, he said he believes, as one of the people instrumental in negotiating the MoU, that Iran broke the deal, and that it only abided by the terms of the MoU for approximately one week. Then he says they began shooting.

    And so the US’s standpoint is very simple: They promised to lift the blockade in exchange for Iran to stop shooting. Iran, they said, did not, and as a result, the military responses will continue.

Kuwaiti air defences intercepting ‘missile and drone attacks’

    The General Staff of the Kuwait Army says its air defences are “currently intercepting hostile missile and drone attacks”.

    It said the sounds of explosions are the “result of air defence systems intercepting” the attacks.

    The Kuna news agency, meanwhile, said alarms were sounding across the country.

IRGC promises ‘crushing’ response to US strike on Aq Tekeh Bridge

    The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says a US cruise missile targeted the Aq Taka Khan bridge area in Aqqala, in the northern province of Golestan, according to the Fars news agency.

    The IRGC’s Golestan branch said the attack caused no casualties, but promised a “crushing” response.

Trump: For each Iranian attack, ‘we’re going to hit them 20 to one’

    The US president has been speaking to reporters on board Air Force One.

    He again insisted that the US has already won the war on Iran, saying the Iranians “have very little left, and they want to make a deal so badly”. But, he said, “I just don’t know if they’re worthy of making a deal. I don’t know if they’re going to honour the deal.”

    When asked why Iran would attack commercial vessels if they wanted to make a deal, Trump responded, “Because they’re sort of crazy, to be honest. It’s sounded crazy; they’re a little bit out of control, but they want to make a deal badly.”

    He also warned of significant retaliation, saying, “We just hit them very hard. Every time they hit us, we’re going to hit them 20 to one.”