Trump vows to hit Iran very hard, threatens to seize Kharg Island
Why this matters: local context for readers following news across Pakistan and the region.
US President Donald Trump has announced “more bombing” on Iran tonight, saying the strikes will be “larger in scale and more powerful.” Speaking to Fox News, Trump claimed that Iran has “no defences left” and is “finished,” alleging that newspapers and media outlets were refusing to report this. “We could enter there as soon as tomorrow if we wanted to. We could send military personnel. I do not want to send troops there, but if I chose to, we could deploy a small contingent and take control,” he said. Earlier, Trump had also announced plans for another strike on Iran in a post on Truth Social. He further stated that “at any time in the near future, we will take control of Kharg Island and other key oil infrastructure sites and assume complete control of its oil and gas markets, just as we did with Venezuela.” Trump told Fox News that the US dropped “$250 million worth of bombs” on Iran overnight and repeated his threat to seize Kharg Island. However, he also expressed doubts about whether there was sufficient public support in the US for such a military operation. “I am not sure there is an appetite in the country for a military operation, no matter how good it may be,” he said Following Trump’s earlier announcement of a major strike on Iran, US forces carried out additional attacks on Iran on Thursday morning. US Central Command described the strikes as a response to Iran’s “continued and unprovoked aggression.” Meanwhile, unofficial reports indicated that explosions were heard in western Tehran and near Mehrabad Airport. Residents of Karaj also reported hearing blasts. In response, Iran claimed it had targeted US bases in the region and had completely closed the Strait of Hormuz. According to Fars News Agency, the IRGC Navy said it had targeted two vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that were allegedly attempting to pass through the waterway “illegally.” Later, Iranian state news agencies reported that drone attacks had been carried out against the US Fifth Fleet ba