U.S.
President Donald Trump threatened on Monday (August 31, 2026) to hit Iran “hard” after the two foes traded fire for the first time in weeks , as his Treasury secretary vowed to keep up a pressure campaign aimed at hobbling Tehran’s economy.
After six months of war, the foes remain at an impasse, with Iran keeping the strategic Strait of Hormuz closed and the U.S. persisting with a counter-blockade of Iranian ports. The exchange raised fears of a return to major hostilities, with the U.S. President vowing to respond. “There will be a response.
On Sunday (August 30), the United States carried out strikes on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran quickly retaliating by attacking U.S. military targets in West Asia.
“We’re going to hit them hard,” Mr. Trump said, according to a Fox News reporter who spoke to him briefly. The United States said it attacked Iranian rocket launchers on the island of Larak to prevent Tehran planting mines in the key shipping lane.
Iran is exerting economic pressure of its own through its blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, which has roiled global markets and driven up prices for American voters in a closely fought midterm election year. Despite traffic remaining throttled six months on, Mr. Iran, however, insists it is in charge of the sea lane.
Trump has claimed the U.S. navy has “total control” of the strait, with Washington last week announcing it had completed clearing explosives from the waterway. The Revolutionary Guards said Monday that a “rogue” oil tanker caught fire near the strait after it hit two mines while attempting to transit an “illegal route. The U.S. military called the claim “disinformation,” saying: “No ships have hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran recently has been trying to push the U.S. to return to the previous deal, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi telling state TV on Monday that “the solution is completely clear and straightforward: the United States must return to its commitments”. “In that case, everything can be put back on the right track,” he said.
One-fifth of the world’s oil passed through the strait before the war. Mediators have tried for months to broker an end to the war, but an earlier truce and memorandum of understanding fell apart.
State media reported that three people were killed in the U.S. attack Sunday on Larak, with several others wounded. But Mr. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent vowed to keep up the economic pain.
“We continue to strive for a path of agreement and understanding, and we believe that continuing the war is neither in our interest, nor in the interest of the region,” he said at a summit in Kyrgyzstan, adding “the solution to the existing problems is dialogue and cooperation. Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards said the ballistic missile attack targeting two U.S. air bases in Jordan caused “heavy damage”. Trump told Fox that all the missiles fired at U.S. forces had been shot down, except for one that was determined not to pose a threat. Jordan’s army said it had intercepted eight missiles, without stating their origin. Iran also said it targeted U.S. personnel at an air base in the UAE, and shot down an American drone over Hormuz. Abu Dhabi said it intercepted a drone over the country’s waters, but dismissed claims that Al Minhad Air Base had been targeted as “baseless. A tanker leaving the strait reported being hit by three “unknown projectiles” just off the northeastern edge of Oman, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations agency said late Monday, noting that there were no known environmental impacts or casualties. The exchange of fire came after weeks of relative calm, with the Trump administration recently pivoting to “economic warfare”. Trump had called Iran “a Failed Nation”, saying on social media that its military was decimated, its finances were crumbling “and their leadership is in total disarray”. “We are going to continue exerting pressure, and we’ve had very good discussions here already,” Mr. Bessent told reporters at a G20 meeting in North Carolina. He said a turning point in the pressure campaign could come “within weeks or months”.
Iran responded with missile and drone attacks aimed at Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, saying they targeted U.S. forces there, but President Masoud Pezeshkian later on Monday called for dialogue. The Guards reported knocking out a second U.S. drone over the Hormuz on Monday evening, and Iran’s armed forces central command reiterated a warning to its regional neighbours not to allow the US to use their territory to carry out attacks. Earlier on Monday, Mr.
