US-Iran Conflict Deepens Amid Fresh Strikes
Fresh US strikes triggered air defenses in Tehran as Washington reaffirmed its willingness to pursue diplomacy as Trump says Iran war has cost Washington $37.5 billion.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Fresh US airstrikes prompted Iranian air defenses to activate over Tehran on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump declared that Washington was "not finished" with the conflict, saying the war has already cost the United States $37.5 billion.
The latest developments came as fighting between the United States and Iran expanded beyond the Strait of Hormuz, following the collapse of a preliminary agreement after clashes around the strategic waterway. The conflict has increasingly affected key regional routes vital to global oil supplies.
Despite the continued military campaign, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated Washington's position that diplomacy remains an option.
Speaking during a Southeast Asia ministers' meeting in Manila, Rubio said the United States remains prepared to seek an agreement with Tehran.
"The problem we are currently facing is that they are not taking the negotiations seriously," Rubio said.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said diplomatic contacts with Washington through mediators were continuing.
The latest wave of attacks included US strikes on what American officials described as military logistics infrastructure. Iranian state media also reported strikes in several parts of the country, including around Bushehr, home to a nuclear power plant.
Iranian state television reported that air defense activity was heard in western, eastern, and northeastern Tehran.
As the conflict approaches its fifth month and the United States prepares for November legislative elections, Trump faces growing political pressure over a war that has become increasingly unpopular among parts of the American public.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that the military campaign has cost $37.5 billion, defending a request for additional funding worth tens of billions of dollars.
The US military also announced it had carried out its eleventh consecutive night of strikes against Iran, saying the operations targeted military sites to further reduce Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump also said a future target could include the underground Pickaxe Mountain complex near Natanz, which Western intelligence suspects is being developed as an undeclared uranium enrichment facility.
Iran responded by warning that any such attack would be considered an expansion of the conflict. The Khatam Al-Anbiya military command said it would target "all the interests of America, the allies and supporters" if the site were attacked.
Trump also argued that the sustained campaign had significantly weakened Iran.
"If we left right now, it would take Iran 20, 25 years to rebuild," he said. "We're not finished at all... we're not leaving right now."
Kuwait's military said Wednesday that its air defenses were responding to Iranian drone attacks, while Bahrain said it intercepted Iranian attacks after warning sirens sounded across the country.
Kuwait and Jordan also reported intercepting Iranian drones and missiles.
Iranian military officials said they had targeted US assets in Kuwait and Bahrain, including air defense systems, radar installations, and administrative buildings.
In a statement carried by Iran's state news agency IRNA, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said:
"With this radar sweep, the enemy should prepare for even more decisive and powerful waves of drone and missile attacks."
Trump also warned Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi movement against carrying out its threat to blockade Saudi ports, saying the United States would "take care of" the group if it proceeded.
Maritime intelligence provider Vanguard Tech reported that a Singapore-flagged tanker and a Liberia-flagged tanker reversed course in the Red Sea after loading crude oil at Saudi Arabia's Yanbu port.
The Revolutionary Guards separately said two tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz were struck by explosions that caused major fires and left the vessels immobilized.
Earlier, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency reported that an unidentified projectile had struck a tanker off the coast of Oman.
The latest developments underscore the continued expansion of the conflict across multiple fronts, even as diplomatic contacts between Washington and Tehran remain ongoing.