The United States intensified its airstrikes against Iran early Thursday, hitting targets further north, while American forces also fired on a vessel they accused of trying to breach the naval blockade on the Islamic Republic.

Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes on Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait before dawn.

Prolonged exchanges of strikes between the U.S. and Iran across the Middle East, along with renewed threats to the Strait of Hormuz, have undermined the interim deal to end the Iran war and could push the region back into full-scale conflict.

Iranian officials say U.S. strikes have already killed more than 35 people and wounded over 300 others.

For the first time in this latest round of violence, strikes have also reached areas around Iran's capital, Tehran.

When the U.S. and Israel initiated hostilities against Iran on February 28, Tehran effectively shut the strait to maritime traffic, a decision that drove up the cost of oil, fertilizer, and numerous other commodities far beyond the region, thereby granting Iran substantial leverage in negotiations.

An adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Akbar Velayati, indicated that the country’s theocratic system would persist in its efforts to retain control of the strait, characterizing Tehran’s command of the waterway on Thursday as “a very precious achievement.”

The escalating prices present a significant challenge for U.S. President Donald Trump and his Republican Party, which aims to retain its majority in Congress during the November elections.

However, Washington has encountered difficulties in successfully reopening the waterway, prompting Trump to reinstate the naval blockade on Wednesday.

Iran’s parliament speaker and lead negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, stated that Iran was prepared for a more extensive military confrontation should the United States fail to adhere to the terms of the interim agreement.

Additionally, Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened to halt all energy exports from the Middle East in response to the blockade.

"The export of oil and gas from the region will be either for everyone or for no one," the Guard asserted.

Trump reiterated his assertion that Iran was prepared to negotiate a peace agreement, yet he offered no further details.

"They are not in favor of our current approach, and they are keen to reach a resolution. We will determine whether we come to an agreement with them or simply bring this to a conclusion," he stated on Wednesday at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania.

Trump separately stated on social media that Tehran had made a goodwill gesture by releasing an American citizen who had been wrongfully detained in Iran since 2024.

He did not provide further details.

Human rights lawyer Jared Genser released a statement identifying the detainee as his client Dena Karari, a U.S.-Iranian citizen who runs a nonprofit organization and had been charged with espionage.

Iran did not immediately acknowledge the release, and her case had not been publicly disclosed, as is often the situation with detentions in the Islamic Republic.

According to state media, the U.S. strikes carried out early Thursday struck areas near Tehran.

The reports also indicated that American attacks targeted Semnan province, which houses Iran's ballistic missile production and space program.

Iranian media additionally reported that strikes occurred on Thursday morning across the provinces of Hamedan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan, Lorestan, Markazi, and Sistan and Baluchistan.

On Wednesday, the U.S. resumed daylight strikes on Iran, further highlighting the increasing frequency of the attacks.

Central Command reported that an assault on Greater Tunb Island, a strategically vital location in the Strait of Hormuz, targeted Iranian defense and missile sites.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military reported that it had opened fire on the Curacao-flagged oil tanker Belma as it sailed toward Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf.

After the vessel “ignored multiple warnings,” a U.S. aircraft disabled the merchant ship by firing a missile into its smokestack.

Iranian state television reported that another American strike on Wednesday targeted a barracks housing Iran's 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, a unit equipped with tanks and armored vehicles, in Sistan and Baluchestan province.

The report indicated that the Americans fired at least 13 missiles in the attack, resulting in seven deaths, including both conscripts and career soldiers, and a number of wounded troops.

Iran retaliated on Thursday by launching missile and drone strikes against Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait, according to authorities in those countries, which host U.S. forces.

No immediate confirmation of damage or casualties resulting from the attacks was provided.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi condemned an overnight drone attack on the city of Irbil in Iraq’s semiautonomous northern Kurdish region.

The drone, which authorities said had been intercepted, struck during his visit to the U.S., where he stated that Iraq would work to disarm non-state armed groups, including those backed by Iran.

The latest round of hostilities is concentrated around the Strait of Hormuz.

The challenge of reopening the strait has persistently confounded the United States ever since Iran blocked it during the early stages of the conflict.

Under the interim agreement, some vessels began traversing the passage via a route near Oman, supervised by the U.S. military and beyond Tehran's control.

In recent days, Iran has targeted ships using that route, leading to a series of retaliatory attacks.

The U.S. has threatened to reopen the strait by force, but experts argue that this would require a much larger naval force, if not tens of thousands of ground troops.

Imposing the blockade is another way to put pressure on Iran.

Meanwhile, oil prices are climbing; Brent crude, the international benchmark, traded above $85 a barrel on Thursday—more than 15% higher than its pre-war level, yet still well below the nearly $120 peak reached at the height of the conflict.