"It's Over": Trump Declares Ceasefire Dead as Iran Widens Retaliation Across the Gulf

The crisis in the Gulf deepened further on Thursday as the United States carried out a second, larger round of airstrikes on Iran , hitting some 90 targets , up from about 80 a day earlier, with Tehran responding by striking US-linked sites in Bahrain and Kuwait , and claiming targets in Qatar as well, though details of any impact there remain unconfirmed.

The latest exchange traces back to Tuesday's attacks on three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz , including the Qatari-owned LNG carrier Al Rekayyat , which prompted Washington to revoke Iran's sanctions waiver for oil sales and launch the first round of strikes. Iran's foreign ministry called the American attacks a "gross violation" of the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries last month to end the war.

Sirens sounded repeatedly in Bahrain , home to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet , while Kuwait's military said it intercepted incoming drones and missiles; Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed the attacks. Iranian state media reported fresh explosions in Bushehr, Chabahar, Bandar Abbas and Sirik, and said a firefighter was killed in a strike on Iranshahr airport . The US-led Joint Maritime Information Center raised its threat assessment for shipping through Hormuz to "severe," warning further hostile action by Iran was likely.

For the first time since April, US strikes also hit Iranian bridges, including one on the route to Mashhad , where the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was buried on Thursday, concluding a days-long funeral that had drawn large crowds across Iran and Iraq. Two days of American bombing have now killed at least 14 people and wounded 78 , according to Iran's health ministry.

Speaking after a NATO summit in Turkiye, US President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire "over," warning Iran that further attacks on shipping would bring consequences "much worse," while reviving threats to hit Iran's civilian infrastructure and seize the oil hub of Kharg Island , which handles roughly 90 per cent of Iran's crude exports . Tehran pushed back hard: Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf warned, "if you strike, you'll get hit," while Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi called Trump's remarks an admission of US policy failure.

Oil markets, however, showed signs of restraint despite the escalation. Brent crude rose as much as 1.5 per cent to above $79 a barrel on Thursday, after surging more than 5 per cent on Wednesday, while WTI hovered near $74 . Analysts said the market's reaction has grown more measured after months of recurring strikes, with some traders betting the exchange will not spiral into full-scale war, even as others warned any further escalation could restore a larger geopolitical risk premium.

Talks on a permanent settlement , covering the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and curbs on Iran's nuclear programme, had been expected to resume once the funeral ended; that timeline now looks increasingly uncertain.