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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran’s joint military command on Thursday threatened to destroy "all the infrastructure in the region" if the US continues to strike the civilian infrastructure in Iran as fighting intensifies between the two warring parties.
“Under no circumstances and in no way will we allow the United States, as a foreign and extra-regional country, to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz,” spokesman for the Central Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters said in a statement reported by state media on X, noting the attacks as “Iran's inviolable red line,” and that Tehran would “strike all the region's infrastructure” in return.
“If U.S. aggression continues, the war will extend to new arenas,” army spokesperson and Iran’s joint military stated on Thursday via state media.
The threats from Iran come amid escalating tensions as the US has continued strikes against hundreds of Iranian targets, the majority spanning the southern provinces near the Persian Gulf.
Iran claimed that the US forces had struck water facilities, grain storage and struck near a hospital in the city of Ahvaz treating patients who are suffering from cancer. Iranian officials said at least 30 civilians have been killed in recent US strikes with over 200 people wounded.
Tehran launched a series of attacks targeting American bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, as well as the Kurdistan Region’s capital in response to several bombardments launched by US forces targeting Iranian military infrastructure and vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s strategic waterway which sees the transit of roughly one fifth of the world’s energy exports.
Erbil-based Counter-Terrorism Directorate confirmed that the US-led Coalition had “intercepted and shot down eight explosive-laden drones” late evening local time.
Bahrain’s defense forces stated that its General Command and air defense systems “confronted, intercepted, and destroyed a number of treacherous Iranian aerial attacks” on Thursday, in a statement on X.
Iran top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf released a statement about the state of negotiations with the US to the Iranian people in which he said that Iran was ready for war but that diplomacy is still an option.
President Trump announced on his social media after Ghalibaf’s remarks that Tehran had released an American prisoner held since December 2024. Trump described the move a “gesture of goodwill,” amid a sharp rise in escalations with the US subsequent tit-for-tat aerial bombardment campaigns.
“She is now safely outside of Iran, and in good condition. The United States of America appreciates this gesture of Goodwill by Iran!” said Trump.
Iran’s release of Iranian-American citizen Dena Karari, held on alleged charges of espionage, signals hope of Tehran’s willingness to engage the US in talks despite ensuing escalations.
