US forces strike Iran for 2nd straight day

WASHINGTON -- US forces conducted strikes against Iran for a second straight day on Wednesday to "degrade" Iran's ability "to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz," the US Central Command said.

The United States is "holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway," the command said in a post on X.

More than 20 US Navy warships were patrolling waters across the Middle East on Wednesday, the command said in an earlier post.

The move came after US President Donald Trump warned at the NATO summit in Ankara earlier the same day that the US military would probably hit Iran again.

"I'll give a little warning: We're going to hit them hard tonight," Trump said, adding that he did not expect a full-fledged conflict with Iran.

Following Trump's remarks at the summit, Iran's Press TV, citing an informed source, reported that Iran would close the Strait of Hormuz and strike twice as many targets given any fresh US attack.

The developments came as the United States and Iran traded fresh attacks from Tuesday night into Wednesday, marking a new round of escalation.