Iran’s attacks on oil infrastructure and pledges to choke off a significant waterway left markets on edge Tuesday as america promised blistering recent strikes. The war entered its eleventh day with no sign of ending as its effects rippled across the Middle East and beyond.
For the primary time for the reason that war began, the Pentagon released details on the variety of American troops who’ve been injured, saying eight of the roughly 140 service members wounded are in serious condition.
Either side sharpened their rhetoric as they dug in, with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth again promising essentially the most intense strikes yet, while Iran’s leaders ruled out talks and threatened U.S. President Donald Trump.
Iran launched recent attacks against Israel and Gulf Arab countries, while Israel carried out airstrikes on Iran and Lebanon, where it’s battling Hezbollah militants.
Residents of Tehran said they’d experienced a number of the war’s heaviest strikes, with electricity cut to neighborhoods. A lady said she saw a residential constructing get hit. She and others reached by The Associated Press spoke on condition of anonymity to stop reprisals. Tens of 1000’s of Iranians have sought shelter within the countryside.
Death toll rises within the Gulf
The United Arab Emirates reported two more deaths as nine drones struck the country, and nearly three dozen other drones and missiles were intercepted. Firefighters battled a blaze after an Iranian drone strike in the commercial city of Ruwais, home to petrochemical plants, officials said. No injuries were reported there.
Iranian attacks on the rich Gulf country — home to the business and travel hub of Dubai — have killed six people and wounded 122 others for the reason that surprise bombardment of Iran by the U.S. and Israel began on Feb. 28.
In Bahrain, authorities said an Iranian attack hit a residential constructing within the capital, Manama, killing a 29-year-old woman and wounding eight people. Bahrain’s Defense Ministry says it has intercepted over 100 ballistic missiles and 175 drones for the reason that war began.
Sirens also sounded in Jerusalem, and sounds of explosions may very well be heard in Tel Aviv as Israel’s air defenses worked to intercept barrages from Iran. Hezbollah, which began firing on Israel after the beginning of the war, launched missiles into Israel.
US and Iranian leaders trade threats
On the Pentagon, Hegseth warned that Tuesday “might be yet again our most intense day of strikes inside Iran: Probably the most fighters, essentially the most bombers, essentially the most strikes, intelligence more refined and higher than ever.” He said the last 24 hours had seen the fewest Iranian missiles fired within the war.
Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said U.S. forces hit greater than 5,000 targets.
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The Pentagon individually said Tuesday that about 140 U.S. service members have been wounded within the war, and the “overwhelming majority” of the injuries were minor, with 108 service members already back on duty. Eight U.S. service members suffered severe injuries, and 7 have been killed.
In Iran, at the least 1,230 people have been killed, while the death toll is at the least 397 in Lebanon and 12 in Israel, in line with officials.
Iran’s leaders have remained defiant after days of heavy strikes targeting the country’s leadership, military, ballistic missiles and disputed nuclear program. Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, said on X that Iran was “definitely not in search of a ceasefire.”
“We imagine that the aggressor must be punched within the mouth in order that he learns a lesson in order that he won’t ever consider attacking our beloved Iran again,” he said.
A top Iranian security official, Ali Larijani, posted a warning to Trump, writing on X that “Even those larger than you couldn’t eliminate Iran. Watch out to not get eliminated yourself.” Iran has been accused of plotting attempts to kill Trump previously.
Attacks on oil aimed toward pressuring the US
Iran has repeatedly targeted energy infrastructure with attacks that appear aimed toward generating enough global economic pain to pressure the U.S. and Israel to finish their strikes. It has also fired on Israel and U.S. military bases within the region.
Brent crude, the international standard, spiked to almost $120 on Monday before falling back but was still at around $90 a barrel on Tuesday, nearly 24% higher than when the war began. The Dow Jones Industrial Average initially drifted lower Tuesday, nevertheless it turned positive as oil prices sank and hopes rose that wealthy industrialized countries could tap into strategic reserves.
Iran has effectively stopped tankers from using the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil is carried.
Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. had “completely destroyed” 10 inactive mine-laying vessels after reports of Iranian motion within the strait.
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said it “is not going to allow the export of even a single liter of oil from the region to the hostile side and its partners until further notice.”
Amin Nasser, the president and CEO of Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco, said tankers were being rerouted to avoid the strait, and that its east-west pipeline would reach its full capability of seven million barrels a day being dropped at the Red Sea port of the Yanbu this week.
“The situation on the Strait of Hormuz is obstructing sizable volumes of oil from the entire region,” he said. “If this takes a protracted time, that could have serious impact on the worldwide economy.”
A whole lot of 1000’s displaced by fighting
The U.N. refugee agency said Tuesday that greater than 667,000 people in Lebanon had registered as displaced — a rise of over 100,000 since a day earlier — and greater than 85,000 people from Lebanon, mostly Syrians, had entered neighboring Syria.
The British government said the number of economic flights from the UAE to the U.K. is returning to normal levels, with 32 flights operated from Dubai to Britain on Monday and one other 36 scheduled Tuesday. British Airways, nevertheless, said it suspended flights to and from Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, Dubai and Tel Aviv until later this month.
Many foreign nationals have been getting out of the Persian Gulf region for the reason that war began, including over 45,000 U.K. residents, the British Foreign Office said. Some 40,000 people returned to america, in line with the State Department.
Magdy reported from Cairo, and Keaten reported from Geneva. Associated Press writers Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, David Rising in Bangkok, Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, and Toqa Ezzidin and Fatma Khaled in Cairo contributed to this story.