The US military struck military targets on Iran's Kharg Island, prompting Iranian threats to turn regional US-affiliated oil infrastructure to ashes. Concurrently, the US Embassy in Baghdad came under heavy drone attack, and the IRGC launched a massive joint missile barrage with Hezbollah targeting Israel and US bases.
The United States military launched heavy airstrikes against military targets on Iran's strategic Kharg Island, significantly escalating the ongoing regional conflict. According to Iran International, an opposition outlet critical of the Iranian regime, US President Donald Trump stated the military had the capability to destroy the island's oil infrastructure but intentionally spared it due to "humanitarian considerations." Trump warned he would reconsider this decision if Iran disrupts the safe and free passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Pro-regime media, including Fars News, reported 15 explosions across the island targeting air defenses and the airport control tower, while confirming that vital oil facilities remained intact, as relayed by the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya Farsi.
In immediate retaliation to the Kharg Island strikes and Trump's warnings, the spokesperson for Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters issued a severe threat. If Iranian energy infrastructure is attacked, all regional oil and energy infrastructure belonging to companies with US shares or cooperating with the US will be "destroyed immediately and turned to a pile of ashes", according to the Qatari-funded Al Jazeera.
Simultaneously, the US Embassy inside Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone was subjected to a coordinated drone and missile attack. NAYA, an Iraqi channel expressing strong anti-US and pro-militia sentiments, claimed suicide drones successfully destroyed the embassy's C-RAM air defense radar system and targeted Marine sniper positions. The Associated Press, cited by Al Arabiya Farsi, confirmed a missile struck the embassy's helipad, sending thick plumes of smoke over the compound. Amid the chaos in the Iraqi capital, US airstrikes targeted a residential building in the Karrada/Arsat area, killing at least three Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) commanders, according to the pro-Iran Al Mayadeen Iraq.
Broadening the offensive, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced the launch of Wave 48 of operations dubbed "True Promise 4." The pro-IRGC channel Sepah Pasdaran declared the joint operation with Hezbollah utilized solid-fuel Kheibar Shekan and liquid-fuel Ghadr ballistic missiles alongside suicide drones to pound Haifa, the Golan Heights, and the Galilee in northern Israel. The IRGC also targeted US forces at Erbil and Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. At the Saudi base, The Wall Street Journal reported that five US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refueling aircraft were damaged, according to the Iranian channel Akhbar Jang.
The spiraling conflict continues to exert massive pressure on global markets. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively blockaded by Iran for the past two weeks, oil prices have surged dramatically, closing at $104 per barrel, a $37 increase since the war began, as reported by the Iranian economic channel Eghtesad Emrouz.
The sources exhibit highly polarized rhetoric, with Iranian state and pro-Resistance channels emphasizing US vulnerabilities, the 'True Promise' operational branding, and significant damage to American hardware like the C-RAM in Baghdad and tanker planes in Saudi Arabia. Conversely, opposition and Saudi-aligned channels focus heavily on Trump's narrative of total US military dominance and the narrative that Iran is seeking a ceasefire deal out of desperation.