President Trump on Wednesday promised to make Iran “pay the price” for slow-rolling peace negotiations with the U.S. as American forces in the Middle East launched a new round of airstrikes.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said he would “hit them hard again today” for being too slow during peace talks. Still, he added that the bombing was mostly in reaction to the downing of a U.S. Army helicopter earlier this week.
“They should sign that deal,” Mr. Trump said. “They keep tapping us along. They keep playing us for suckers.”
Mr. Trump made similar comments on Truth Social earlier in the day, saying that Iran was “all talk and no action” on a peace deal.
Videos circulated by Iranian media outlets on Wednesday evening showed large black smoke clouds coming from buildings in Tehran.
The Pentagon launched strikes against targets in southern Iran on Tuesday in retaliation for the downing of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter on Monday, which the U.S. said was shot down by Iran.
Those strikes, which U.S. Central Command dubbed “self-defense strikes,” reportedly targeted Iranian air defenses and radar stations. State-affiliated media in Iran reported large explosions near the coastal cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirak, as well as the island of Qeshm.
State media reports from Iran also indicated that U.S. airstrikes may have hit water facilities in the south of the country, cutting off access to drinking water for thousands of citizens. Mr. Trump has previously promised to hit critical infrastructure, like bridges and electrical power plants, in Iran.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian condemned the apparent attacks on the water facilities, saying that it was a sign that the U.S. is desperate.
“Threats to target them — from transportation networks to the electricity and water industries — are not a show of strength but a sign of desperation in the face of a nation’s will.
Iran, relying on the knowledge and capabilities of its specialists, national unity, and solidarity, will stand firm against any pressure or threat,” he wrote on X.
CENTCOM has not confirmed whether it intentionally targeted desalination plants in Iran during Tuesday’s strikes.
Iran retaliated for the U.S. strikes overnight, targeting U.S. military installations in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain.
The militaries of the three nations all reported intercepting drones and missiles in the early morning hours on Wednesday. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said earlier in the day that it intended to target U.S. military installations across the Middle East.
The Arab League, a regional economic and political organization based in the Middle East and North Africa, condemned the attacks shortly after, with Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit arguing that Iran was looking to escalate the conflict for its own needs.
“Such an approach is wholly unacceptable and reflects an Iranian effort aimed at undermining Arab regional security while simultaneously exerting pressure on the international community,” he wrote in a statement.
The attacks from Iran and the incoming U.S. airstrikes are likely to set back peace efforts, which have been dragging on for nearly two months. Mr. Trump said earlier this week that the U.S. could sign a deal with Iran in a matter of days, yet there was little evidence of progress toward a comprehensive agreement to end hostilities.
A delegation from Qatar reportedly arrived in Iran on Wednesday to facilitate further peace negotiations with the U.S.
Pakistani and Qatari mediators have for weeks shuttled back and forth between the U.S. and Iran, ferrying various proposals for a “memorandum of understanding” that could set the stage for more in-depth conversations about Tehran’s nuclear program.
The MOU could end Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which it has maintained for over three months. The blockade has put extreme pressure on international energy markets and U.S. gas prices.
The U.S. average price of a gallon of gas stood at $4.15 on Wednesday, down from $4.52 a month ago but up 39% from when the war started, according to the AAA motor club. Crude oil prices, meanwhile, sat at around $82 a barrel, a near $20 increase from pre-war levels.
In response, the U.S. launched its own naval blockade of Iran’s ports, not allowing any ship to enter or exit.
CENTCOM on Wednesday claimed responsibility for disabling an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, which it alleged was attempting to violate the blockade by transporting oil from Iran.
“CENTCOM disabled Palau-flagged M/T Settebello as it transited the Gulf of Oman. A U.S. aircraft fired precision munitions into the ship’s engine room after the crew repeatedly failed to comply with directions from American forces,” CENTCOM wrote on X.
U.S. naval forces have disabled eight “non-compliant vessels” and redirected 134 ships since the start of the blockade in April, according to CENTCOM.
In addition to the blockade, Mr. Trump said Wednesday that he directed the U.S. military last month to conduct a “secret mission” to help oil tankers pass through the Strait of Hormuz. He added that the operation had successfully moved 200 ships through the waterway over the past month.
“This widely successful effort is because the United States of America controls the Strait of Hormuz — not Iran. Their military is defeated, and their economy is lost,” he wrote on Truth Social.
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