Overnight, the United States carried out a new series of strikes on targets in Iran. According to U.S. Central Command, military surveillance sites, communications systems and air-defense assets across the country came under attack. CENTCOM said the strikes targeted facilities that posed a threat to U.S. troops and international commercial shipping in the region.
In response, Iran announced missile strikes on U.S. military facilities in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the targets included air bases and sites where U.S. fighter jets were stationed. Tehran claims the strikes damaged aircraft and military infrastructure. Iran also said it had attacked U.S. Navy Fifth Fleet facilities in Bahrain, including communications assets and Patriot systems. CENTCOM, for its part, denied Iranian media reports that an American warship had been hit.
The IRGC later said it had carried out two waves of retaliatory strikes that “hit and destroyed 18 key American military targets” at the Ali Al Salem and Ahmad Al Jaber air bases in Kuwait, as well as Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain. Iranian state media also reported a “massive” missile strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
At the same time, Iran announced the complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping. According to Iranian media, two vessels attempting to pass through the strait without Tehran’s permission came under attack. The IRGC said the strait would remain closed “until further notice,” and that any attempt to approach it would be treated as cooperation with the enemy. CENTCOM, meanwhile, says commercial vessels continue to transit the strait in both directions despite Iranian threats.
Against this backdrop, Trump held a Situation Room meeting to discuss options for new strikes on Iran, Axios reports. According to the outlet’s sources, one option under consideration is a large-scale but short-duration operation aimed at forcing Iran to shift its position in negotiations. The meeting was attended by Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and White House special envoy Steve Witkoff. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth joined the discussion from CENTCOM headquarters in Tampa.
At the same time, Axios notes, Qatari mediators held talks with Iranian representatives in Tehran on Wednesday, seeking to restore momentum in discussions over an agreement the United States and Iran had been negotiating in recent weeks.