Tensions escalated Tuesday as the U.S. launched a fresh round of strikes on Iranian military targets near the Strait of Hormuz, in a confrontation that erupted over the weekend after a lull of more than a month in major U.S.-Iran fighting.

President Donald Trump said the strikes were in retaliation for what he called an Iranian attempt to lay sea mines in the strategic waterway and for Iran's launching of eight missiles toward a U.S. military base in Jordan.

“The strikes are big and powerful,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, warning that Iran would face a more robust U.S. response if it retaliated.

U.S. forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets inside Iran, U.S. Central Command confirmed. Targets included air-defence sites, radar systems, maritime assets, communications facilities and what CENTCOM called mine-laying capabilities.

The operation followed recent Iranian attacks or attempted attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and on U.S. military personnel in the region, the command said.

Iran Promises Revenge

Iran’s armed forces general staff said the United States would pay a “heavy cost” for the attacks and that Washington was escalating the conflict.

Iranian authorities and state media later claimed responsibility for missile and drone attacks against U.S. interests in the region. The full extent of the Iranian response was not clear.

Kuwait’s military also said its air defences were responding to hostile missile and drone attacks, which it said were from Iran.

The latest tit-for-tat came after US strikes Sunday on two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM said the launchers were connected to preparations to emplace sea mines in the waterway.

Iran later said it had struck U.S. military positions in Jordan. Jordanian officials said their air defences intercepted eight missiles that had entered the country’s airspace.

The latest U.S. strikes have also resulted in reports of civilian casualties in southern Iran.

Iranian officials and state-linked media said a U.S. strike hit a residential block in Kuhestak, in Hormozgan province, at the time of a wedding there. Iran's Red Crescent later said five people, including a child, were killed and more than 50 wounded.

The U.S. military said it was aware of the reports but denied deliberately targeting civilians. The details of the reported strike and the final death toll must be independently confirmed.

Iranian media also reported attacks on civilian infrastructure, including facilities on Qeshm Island and Sirik. Those claims have not been independently corroborated.

Trump says no talks

Later, Trump said he was not trying to push Iran back to the negotiating table and added the United States was now in a strong position around the Strait of Hormuz.

He also warned that any further Iranian retaliation could trigger a much larger U.S. military response.

The statements reflect a harder line from Washington as fighting resumes after weeks of relative calm. The flare-up also raises fresh concerns about the safety of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy shipping lane.

Despite the fighting, about 17 million barrels of oil passed through the strait Monday, the highest daily volume since the conflict disrupted shipping, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said. He said average daily flows were now about 8 million barrels.

Conflict moves into another dangerous phase

The latest clash comes after a U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran that began Feb. 28 and months of fighting, economic pressure and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was in power at the beginning of the conflict, was killed in the war. Current reporting shows that Mojtaba Khamenei now runs Iran.

Recent U.S.-Iran exchanges have increased the likelihood of a wider regional conflict, particularly as the scope of attacks and air-defence activity moves beyond Iran and into countries such as Jordan and Kuwait.

For now both Washington and Tehran are signalling that further escalation remains an option.