WASHINGTON/CAIRO, Sept 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. and Iran were back on a war footing on Wednesday after the most significant exchange of fire in weeks, with Washington threatening more devastating strikes, while Iran condemned an attack that it said killed five and wounded dozens of civilians at a wedding. The U.S. military’s Central Command said it struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps air defenses, radar systems, maritime assets, mine-laying capabilities and communications sites on Tuesday, with Iranian media reporting hits on multiple targets near the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway where Tehran has threatened tankers attempting to pass without authorization. Iran said it struck U.S. assets in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Iraq, according to official statements. The IRGC said it killed a large number of U.S. forces in Jordan, but two U.S. officials told Reuters there had not been any casualties, according to initial assessments.
The IRGC said on Wednesday it had carried out a missile and drone attack on Kuwait’s Ali Al Salem Air Base, targeting the accommodation of a U.S. commander, and drone facilities. Kuwait’s fire service said crews extinguished a blaze at a residential complex in the capital early on Wednesday after it was struck by an Iranian drone, causing damage but no casualties. Qatar, which helped mediate a June ceasefire that swiftly unravelled, said in a Foreign Ministry statement that Iran’s attacks will complicate efforts to contain the tension. It added that “it holds the Islamic Republic of Iran fully legally responsible for these attacks and their repercussions and consequences.” Jordan’s armed forces earlier said their air defense systems dealt with 13 ballistic missiles that entered the kingdom’s airspace, 10 of which were intercepted and three fell in remote areas. Bahrain said Iranian drones were intercepted and destroyed. The IRGC also said its ground forces carried out combined missile and drone attacks on U.S. bases in Erbil in northern Iraq, killing several U.S. personnel. Neither Iraq nor the U.S. confirmed the attack. Washington has threatened to cripple the Iranian economy with sanctions, the Trump administration has economic problems of its own with the conflict pushing up fuel prices ahead of November congressional elections. The foreign ministry statement pledged that Iran would respond to “these savage crimes with firmness.”
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