Three ships were struck near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, a day after President Trump warned that the United States would intensify its bombardment if Iran continues to block shipments through the waterway vital to the world’s oil supply.
The vessels were struck by unknown projectiles, maritime security agencies said. Ship traffic through the narrow strait has effectively come to a halt.
Iranian drones also struck near Dubai International Airport as Tehran vowed to ramp up its attacks across the Middle East.
Trump told Axios that U.S. military operation against Iran — now in its 12th day — would be over “soon” because there’s “practically nothing left to target.” But he later told reporters that “we have hit them harder than virtually any country in history has been hit, and we’re not finished yet.”
The New York Times reported that a preliminary investigation found the U.S. “at fault’ for the strike that killed 165 people, including many children, at a girls’ school in Iran on Feb. 28.
Meanwhile, Iranian officials confirmed that Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, was wounded in the airstrikes that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The younger Khamenei has not made any public appearances since his appointment earlier this week.
And the death toll continues to rise. At least 1,230 people have been killed in Iran since the U.S.-Israeli strikes began on Feb. 28. Nearly 400 people in Lebanon have been killed and at least 12 in Israel, according to officials in those countries.
Seven U.S. service members have died in the war, according to U.S. Central Command. The Pentagon said Tuesday that 140 U.S. troops have been wounded in the ongoing conflict, including eight American service members who were “severely injured.”
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