US President Donald Trump has once again accused Iran of refusing to make a deal to end the war, saying "now they will have to pay the price," following the latest flare-up between the two countries.
In a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump wrote: "The Bully of the Middle East is DEAD!!! They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!" He did not give further details on what Washington's next steps would entail.
He later doubled down in front of reporters at the White House, warning of an imminent new attack despite the ceasefire and his efforts to reach a deal to end the war.
"We hit them hard yesterday, and we're going to hit them again hard today," he told reporters at midday (1600 GMT).
The US president said the parties "were really close to a deal, but they keep tapping us along, they keep playing us for suckers." He said Iran should sign the agreement, describing it as "a good deal."
With negotiations on a long-term peace settlement stalled for weeks, Trump has repeatedly taken to social media, alternating between threatening Iran with further military action and claiming that a deal was imminent.
Mutual attacks test fragile ceasefire
Fighting between the United States and Iran briefly resumed overnight, once again testing the fragile ceasefire that has been in place since April, and coming amid Trump's efforts to end the war he launched alongside Israel on February 28.
Trump said the US attacks were a response to Iranian forces shooting down a US military helicopter in the waters off the coast of Oman, in an incident on Monday night.
US troops bombarded air defence systems, ground control stations and radar installations in the area of the Strait of Hormuz, the US CENTCOM command responsible for the region wrote on X.
Tehran then retaliated by attacking US bases in the Gulf region as well as in Jordan. Jordanian air defences intercepted five Iranian missiles, the country's military said.
Kuwait's air defence was deployed, according to military statements. Sirens also sounded again in Bahrain.
According to US media reports, the attacks in Iran took place in three waves and targeted around 20 sites. Iranian media reported explosions in the city of Sirik on the Strait of Hormuz and on Qeshm Island, among other places.
Early on Wednesday, the US CENTCOM command responsible for the region declared the US "self-defense strikes" targeting Iran as "completed."
Thousands in southern Iran left without water
Thousands of residents on the southern coast of Iran were without water following the overnight strikes and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, according to Iranian media reports.
The drinking water supply to the city of Kuhestak in Hormozgan province and 10 other villages had been completely cut off, news agency Mehr reported, citing a government official.
“As a result of this incident, more than 20,000 residents of the region, who already live under difficult climatic conditions and extreme heat, have been cut off from access to water,” the report said.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian criticized the attacks, writing on X: "Critical infrastructures are the lifeblood of the people."
"Threats to target them... are not a show of strength but a sign of desperation in the face of a nation's will," he added.
Trump: US blockade works like "steel wall"
In his Truth Social post, Trump claimed that much of Iran's military "doesn't even exist anymore," following the US and Israeli attacks of the past months.
Days ago, the US president told NBC News in an interview that Iran still had a good fifth of its missile arsenal. He said that was still many missiles, but no longer what it had previously.
In a second Truth Social post on Wednesday, he also stressed that Iran had been severely weakened economically.
The blockade of Iranian ports imposed by the US was extremely effective and worked like a "STEEL WALL," the president wrote.
The Islamic Republic could no longer do any business and could finance neither its bills nor its military, he added.
In response to Iran's effective blockade of the strait, the US imposed a blockade on Iranian ports to weaken the country, which economically depends on oil trade.
For some time, the US has been trying - so far unsuccessfully - to make the Strait of Hormuz navigable again. Global energy prices shot up with the start of the war, putting the Trump administration under pressure.
Report: Delegation from Qatar in Tehran for talks
At the start of the Iran war, the US government promised a quick victory within four to six weeks. However, efforts to end the war and reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz for shipping and oil trade have been stalled for weeks.
A delegation from Qatar has now arrived in Tehran for diplomatic talks, according to a report. The Iranian news agency ISNA reported that the visit would discuss efforts to bring about a lasting end to the war.
Alongside Pakistan and Oman, Qatar is one of the key mediators in the war.
