In brief
The US has launched a new wave of strikes against Iranian forces for the sixth night in a row, deepening a standoff that threatens the critical Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media reports U.S. missiles hitting targets near Qeshm, Bandar Abbas and a nuclear plant in Bushehr. Washington’s chorus of diplomatic openness is tempered by warnings that Iranian attacks on shipping will face consequences. Meanwhile, President Trump praised Iran for releasing a detained U.S. citizen, though Iranian officials denied any prisoner exchange.
The US launched a new wave of strikes against Iran for a sixth night in a row, its military says, as the two sides continue to battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command said the attacks were intended to "further degrade Iranian military capabilities".
Iran’s state media reported US missiles struck close to the Gulf island of Qeshm, near the Strait of Hormuz, as well as in Bandar Abbas and Bushehr – the site of a nuclear power plant.
It comes after the two sides exchanged strikes overnight, with the renewed hostilities further straining their preliminary deal to end the war.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the US President remains open to talks but will hold Iran accountable if it fires on ships in the strait.
The Strait of Hormuz – a critical waterway off Iran’s coast that Tehran effectively blocked in response to US‑Israeli strikes – has remained shut.
Earlier on Thursday, Tehran said it had struck US military bases in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain, while the US said it had inflicted a six‑hour wave of strikes on multiple locations in the strait.
Those exchanges came after President Trump warned Iran it had "better behave" or face further military action.
Iran's top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, told state media that Tehran had "no reason" to abide by any agreement that did not benefit the country.
He added that Iran's national security depended on maintaining what he described as "Iranian arrangements" in the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, President Trump praised Iran for freeing Dena Karari, a US detainee that he said had been "wrongfully detained" in December 2024 and wrote on Truth Social, "The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran!"
Karari’s attorney Jared Genser said she was on her way back to the US. However, Iran’s judiciary on Thursday said no US prisoner had been released or exchanged from its prisons, Iranian state media reported.
