US launches new attacks on Iran as Tehran targets Gulf sites

What is Iran's Pickaxe Mountain? The United States military says it has launched another wave of strikes on Iran, while Tehran says it retaliated with missile and drone attacks against US military assets in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, said it concluded an evening wave of strikes against Iran at 9pm ET on Wednesday (01:00 GMT on Thursday), targeting "Iranian command centres, air defence sites, missile and drone capabilities, and coastal surveillance facilities" in an effort to reduce Iran's ability to disrupt shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian air defences were activated over the capital, Tehran, as state media reported attacks across much of the country. Explosions were reported in Bandar Abbas and on nearby Qeshm island in the south, as well as in the southeastern coastal towns of Sirik, Chabahar and Konarak. Iranian media also reported attacks further inland in Rask, Khondab, Khorramabad and Semnan.