KABUL (Pajhwok): United States President Donald Trump has threatened further attacks on Iran, warning that Washington could strike “anytime we want,” as the death toll from the latest US strikes rose to 18, with at least 108 others wounded.
Trump’s warning on Wednesday came after the United States and Iran exchanged their heaviest barrage since July.
The US military struck cities and areas along Iran’s southern coast, near the Strait of Hormuz, including a wedding party in the city of Kuhestak.
Iran retaliated by launching attacks on US bases across the Middle East, including in Bahrain, Iraq and Jordan, Al Jazeera reported.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said, “We hit them very hard last night,” claiming the strikes had “taken out all of the new equipment that they tried to build along the Strait of Hormuz.”
“It was a very heavy attack last night. And we’re prepared to do another one. And anytime we want,” he said.
Iranian officials said at least 18 people were killed in the US strikes.
The victims included two children, according to Iranian Health Minister Mohammad-Reza Zafarghandi. One of them was a four-year-old child killed in the strike on a wedding party in Kuhestak, in Sirik County.
At least four people were killed in that strike.
Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described the Kuhestak attack as a “war crime” and rejected US claims that its military does not target civilians.
“The reality is so horrifying that even American propaganda has never dared make the claim [the US military] is making today. Sirik is not a story. The civilians are real. The victims are real,” Baghaei wrote on X.
Iranian media reported that the funeral for the four victims of the Kuhestak strike will be held on Thursday.
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