'Begging For Deal': Trump Shares Video Of '20 Times' Bigger US Strikes On Iran

US President Donald Trump has shared a picture and video of a new American attack on an airbase in Iran's southeastern city of Iranshahr, which was partially utilised by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as American forces conducted strikes against Iran for a second straight day. Trump has also doubled down on his threats, telling reporters that the US military will hit Iranian targets 20 times harder than Tehran targets ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran state media reported explosions in multiple locations along the southern Iranian coast, including Bushehr, home to Iran's nuclear power plant complex, and the southern port cities of Chabahar, Konarak, Bandar Abbas, and Sirik. An airbase in Iranshahr also came under US military fire.

The move has sparked retaliatory Iranian strikes targeting Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar in a crossfire that again threatened an interim deal aimed at finding a way to end the war gripping the Persian Gulf. The Associated Press reported that Thursday's Iranian attacks appeared bigger all around. Follow Live Updates

However, there has been no immediate word of damage in the three Gulf Arab countries. Kuwait's military said it was actively intercepting incoming drones and missiles.

Trump's Claim

The US president has claimed that Tehran wants a truce deal with Washington 'badly,' a day after he said the interim memorandum of understanding signed between the two nations was 'over.' 

"Iran called a while ago. They want to make a deal so badly. I just don't know if they are worthy. I don't know if they are going to honour the deal. That's the problem," he told reporters onboard the Air Force One.

Trump did not provide further details of the call -- including who was on the line -- but went on to cast doubt over the value of any deal, calling the Iranians "sort of crazy."

He further renewed his past threats to hit Iran's civilian infrastructure, including electric plants and desalinisation plants, and to seize the oil-production hub of Kharg Island.

"Anything that happens is going to happen very fast," Trump said, though he also suggested the US military might "just finish the job."

After three tankers were hit Tuesday, the US launched strikes on Iran, with Trump declaring that "for him", the interim deal between Washington and Tehran was "over". He, however, said he will allow the negotiations to continue.

Iranian Threats

Iran has, meanwhile, asserted that the interim ceasefire deal gives it the right to manage traffic through the strait. Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a key negotiator in talks seeking a permanent end to the war, was defiant in a post on X and said the Strait of Hormuz would be opened only under "Iranian arrangements" after Tehran and Washington traded strikes in the Middle East.

"The United States still has not learned that bullying and breaking its promises no longer come without consequences," Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X. "Let me be clear: If you strike, you will be struck."

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, also took a swipe at Trump's new threats, saying they are not a sign of strength but rather an admission of the failure of a policy built on brute force.

"Trump's statements today, from insulting the Iranian nation to threatening further attacks, are not a sign of strength, but rather an admission of the failure of a policy built on brute force, sanctions, and threats for years, which could not bring the Iranian nation to its knees. With the criminal and murderous Trump, one must speak in his own language; apparently, he understands the language of force better," he wrote in a post on X. 

Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi also targeted the US, saying that addressing "the civilised and courageous nation of Iran with derogatory language does not diminish its greatness."

"Iranians are known for their civility, culture, and strong moral values. We do not answer vulgarity with vulgarity, but with action: fearlessly and with great valour," he wrote on X. 

Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said, "The aggressor enemy and its accomplices will be severely punished."

The US-Iran War

The latest strikes come just ahead of the Thursday burial of Ali Khamenei, Iran's former supreme leader, who was killed at the outbreak of the war on February 28.

Since the attacks, Tehran has insisted on controlling the strait, saying it will charge fees for passage and threatening to hit vessels that deviate from its authorised route. Its military struck at least three ships in recent days, prompting extensive US strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday, followed by retaliatory attacks from Iran on Gulf countries.

"We're gonna hit 'em hard tonight," Trump said at a NATO summit in Ankara. "They violate the agreement every day."

He added later, however, that "anything that happens is going to be over very quickly." 

Oil prices jumped eight per cent after Trump's earlier comments that the ceasefire was "over."