U.S. launches more strikes on Iranian targets after Trump promises to hit Iran “hard”

The U.S. military launched an additional round of strikes on targets within Iran early Thursday morning local time, U.S. Central Command said, hours after President Trump vowed to hit Iran “hard” in a bid to force the country to agree to a deal on the administration’s terms. 

CENTCOM said on X that it hit “multiple targets in Iran … in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.” It described the strikes as self-defensive. Iranian media outlets reported that explosions were heard or air defenses were activated in multiple cities.

The latest strikes could put new stress on an already brittle two-month-old ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, which has prevented most large-scale attacks but hasn’t stopped the two countries from exchanging fire.

In an earlier salvo on Wednesday, the U.S. struck nearly 20 targets inside Iran in retaliation for Iran’s downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz this week. Iran then launched drones at several U.S. allies in the region.

This is a breaking story; it will be updated.