Iran’s military launched a “decisive operation” against U.S. targets in the Middle East on Tuesday evening after Washington conducted a fresh round of strikes.
The attacks launched by Tehran involved missiles and drones, according to Iranian state media. They were conducted in retaliation for “large and powerful” strikes on Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz announced by U.S. President Donald Trump.
“The strikes are large and powerful, and in retaliation for the Iranians’ failed attempt at adding sea mines to the Strait, which currently has no mines (They have been completely removed or detonated!), and the Iranians shooting eight missiles, all successfully knocked down, at our Military Base in Jordan,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“If the failed Nation of Iran retaliates for this very justified attack, they will be hit again at a much harder and higher level, but it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he added.
Iranian state media reported explosions in the Iranian city of Asaluyeh, as well as the provinces of Sistan and Baluchestan and Hormozgan. One media outlet quoted the Armed Forces General Staff as saying the “American enemy” would pay a “heavy cost” and face “crushing blows” in retaliation for the U.S. attacks.
The latest exchange marks a further escalation in the renewed U.S.–Iran confrontation, with both sides now demonstrating a willingness to conduct repeated strikes rather than limiting their responses to a single retaliatory cycle. Trump’s warning that a larger attack is “waiting in the wings” raises the possibility of further U.S. military action if Tehran continues targeting American forces, while Iran’s use of both missiles and drones suggests it retains multiple options for imposing costs across the region. (EIR)
