US-IRAN WAR: The U.S. military will attack Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT” and will soon take over the country’s “oil infrastructure points,” including taking Kharg Island, President Donald Trump said Thursday morning. An operation to “assume total control” of Iran’s oil and gas markets and infrastructure will occur “at some point in the not too distant future,” Trump vowed in a Truth Social post. It is believed that Kharg Island is one of the most vulnerable economic interests of Iran accounting for about 90% of the country’s crude exports. The planned move was likened to the actions by the U.S. in Venezuela, which “is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America,” Trump wrote.
Trump Escalates Iran Conflict With Fresh Warning
Middle East Crisis Deepens as US and Iran Exchange Strikes
For the second day in a row, the US and Iran have retaliated against each other’s incursions in the Middle East, further threatening an uneasy truce signed in April between the two nations. US Central Command (Centcom) reported on a series of “self-defence strikes” on Iranian military, surveillance and radar facilities in the south of the country, hours after President Donald Trump threatened “hard” action against Iran with U.S. forces.
Tehran Retaliates with Regional Missile Attacks
In response to the attack, Tehran launched a series of strikes against the US military presence in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
The overnight attacks broke the two-month-old ceasefire, making it “practically meaningless,” said Iran’s foreign ministry in a statement early on Thursday. According to Jordanian state media, the country’s air defence forces and air force intercepted and shot down 20 missiles in the country, citing an unnamed military official.
The missiles were shot towards the centre of Jordan’s Azraq, it reported, without inflicting any human injuries or material damage. Meanwhile, Bahrain’s interior ministry said its air raid sirens went off throughout the country, including the capital Manama and the district of Hamad Town, a result of which homes and cars were damaged by falling shrapnel from intercepted Iranian drones.
Brent Crude Surges as Trump Threatens Iran
Oil prices went up immediately after the closure of the shipping channel and the ships’ apparent attack was announced. The world benchmark, Brent crude, rose by around 2% to hit $95 a barrel. Hours before the US launched its latest attack, Trump had warned: “We hit them hard yesterday, and we’re going to hit them hard again today.” When a deal wasn’t reached, Trump wrote on Truth Social that the Iranian leadership had “taken too long to negotiate a deal”.
With 13 years on the line, Ashish Kumar Singh loves everything when it comes to movies, music, travel and pop culture. Formerly employed at ANI, Pinkvilla, India Today and HT, Ashish has interviewed some of the top celebrities of India, including Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan, among others. Breaking news excites him and deadlines are what he chases. Interviewing comes naturally to him. Hit him up at ashish.kumar02singh@gmail.com.
