Explosions have rocked southern Iran for a second consecutive night after Donald Trump declared the fragile ceasefire “over” and ordered fresh strikes to “further degrade Tehran’s ability to threaten freedom of navigation” in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian state media reported blasts in the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Konarak and Chabahar, as well as on Abu Musa Island – one of three small islands claimed by the United Arab Emirates that underpin Iran’s hold over the strategic waterway. Air defence systems were activated in Bandar Abbas, according to state media.
“US launches second wave of strikes on Iran after Trump declares ceasefire over, prompting retaliation threats.”
The new wave of attacks came hours after Trump, speaking at the Nato summit in Ankara, said the 14-point memorandum of understanding signed with Iran on 17 June was “over” and that further talks would be “a waste of time”. The 60-day ceasefire period had not yet expired.
“We hit them very hard last night and will probably hit them hard again tonight,” Trump said earlier, signalling the escalation. US Central Command confirmed the latest strikes were underway, saying they were intended to “hold Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews”.
The exchange of fire began on Tuesday when the US launched “powerful” strikes in response to attacks on three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran retaliated on Wednesday by striking US military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait. Trump accused Iran of “playing dirty” and called the regime “sick”, “bully” and “mentally disturbed”. Vice-President JD Vance warned the US would “punch back harder than ever”.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, responded defiantly on X: “We do not answer vulgarity with vulgarity, but with action: fearlessly and with great valour.” Senior officials had earlier warned that any US attack would be met with an “immediate response”, and Tehran has vowed to shut down the Strait of Hormuz – through which about a fifth of the world’s oil flows – if bombarded again.
Wednesday’s strikes were expected to be bigger than Tuesday’s, an unnamed US official told Reuters. The renewed hostilities mark the worst confrontation since the memorandum was signed, raising the prospect of all-out war in the Gulf. Trump has threatened to “knock down every bridge in Iran in one day” and seize Kharg island, the regime’s strategic oil hub. Iran has not yet commented on the latest explosions.