As the US and Israel continue heavy bombardment of Iranian infrastructure, Washington's call for an international naval coalition in the Strait of Hormuz has been explicitly rejected by France, China, and Japan. Meanwhile, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps escalated its offensive by launching Sejjil ballistic missiles at Israeli targets for the first time.
Following the complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz and a massive spike in global oil prices, US President Donald Trump's plea for international naval assistance has been firmly rebuffed by major allies. According to the state-affiliated Fars News, the Chinese embassy in Washington explicitly rejected the request, stating that the strait is Iran's sovereign right and demanding an immediate halt to hostilities. Similarly, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs vehemently denied reports of deploying warships, confirming its carrier strike group will remain in the Eastern Mediterranean and telling Washington to "stop fear-mongering" according to the pro-government Akharin Khabar. Japanese officials also cited immense legal hurdles, indicating they will make independent decisions rather than bowing to Trump's demands.
In a 30-minute telephone interview with NBC News, Trump claimed he is not ready to sign a peace agreement with Tehran despite Iranian willingness, arguing the conditions are not yet suitable. As reported by the Saudi-funded opposition channel Alarabiya Farsi, Trump minimized American concerns over soaring gas prices and floated the idea of bombing the devastated Kharg Island oil terminal again just for fun. He also questioned the status of the newly appointed Supreme Leader, stating he had heard rumors that Mojtaba Khamenei is dead, though he acknowledged it was likely unverified hearsay according to the independent aggregator Vahid Online.
Iranian officials are maintaining a defiant posture amid the daily US and Israeli bombardments. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the Strait of Hormuz remains open to everyone except the US and its allies. He warned that occupying Kharg Island would be a colossal mistake and threatened that if Iranian energy infrastructure is hit, the energy facilities of American corporations in the region will be targeted according to Fars News. Araghchi also claimed the US has manufactured a replica of Iran's Shahed drone named "Lucas" to attack Arab civilian targets and frame Tehran. Adding to this narrative, Supreme National Security Council member Ali Larijani stated he heard remnants of the Epstein team are designing a 9/11-style false flag operation to falsely implicate Iran in global terrorism according to the hardline Vatan Emrooz.
On the military front, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) executed Waves 53 and 54 of Operation True Promise 4. The IRGC announced the unprecedented use of solid-fuel Sejjil ballistic missiles alongside Khordad, Emad, and Qadr hyper-sonic missiles targeting the terrorist US army at Al Dhafra base and Zionist regime command centers in the heart of the occupied territories according to the reformist-aligned Hameyan Pezeshkian. The regular Iranian Army also claimed highly destructive drone strikes on Israeli police headquarters, unit Lahav 433, and the Gilat Defense satellite center according to the state-run IRNA.
While the Israeli military confirmed a widespread wave of airstrikes against military infrastructure and drone storage facilities in western and central Iran according to the opposition network Iran International, Iranian state media heavily emphasized civilian and cultural casualties. IRNA reported that the American-Zionist aggression has seriously damaged 56 historical museums and cultural sites, including the Golestan Palace and Isfahan's Naqsh-e Jahan Square, calling it a crime against the historical identity of the Iranian nation. Strikes in Shiraz completely destroyed welfare housing for marginalized laborers, while a medicine and baby formula depot was bombed in Hamedan according to the official IRGC channel Sepah Pasdaran.
In stark contrast to the state narrative, exiled opposition figures are actively planning for a post-Islamic Republic future. Exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi released a video message presenting a five-point "Transition System" economic plan aimed at wresting control of the economy from military forces, reclaiming stolen national wealth, and connecting Iran to global markets to end the poverty caused by the regime's incompetence and adventurism according to Iran International.
State-aligned Iranian sources are heavily portraying the US as isolated and desperate on the global stage, amplifying the refusal of allied nations to join Trump's Hormuz coalition. Furthermore, state media is consistently framing US and Israeli actions not just as military strikes, but as direct attacks on the cultural and historical fabric of Iran (such as highlighting damage to the Golestan Palace and Naqsh-e Jahan Square). Meanwhile, opposition channels are amplifying Zelenskyy's statements about Iranian drone transfers and Reza Pahlavi's economic planning, portraying the regime as collapsing under the weight of its own adventurism.