DUBAI/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday Iran had taken too long to negotiate a deal and would now “have to pay the price,” while Tehran said it would reassess diplomatic engagement with Washington after tit-for-tat strikes overnight._x000D_
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Iran launched missile and drone attacks on US bases in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation for American strikes on Iranian targets around the Strait â of Hormuz._x000D_
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The exchange of fire, which came after Trump said Iran had downed a US Apache helicopter near the strait, marks one of the most significant escalations since Washington and Tehran agreed to a ceasefire in April._x000D_
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“Iran is all talk and no action,” Trump said in a social media post on Wednesday. “They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!”_x000D_
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The US military said it had targeted Iranian air defences, ground control stations and surveillance radar sites in what it described as a “proportional response” to the downing of the helicopter, whose two crew â members were rescued._x000D_
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Iran’s Gulf neighbours and Jordan activated air defences to intercept incoming missiles and there were no immediate reports of damage to US bases._x000D_
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The escalation – just days after Iran exchanged strikes with Israel for the first time since the ceasefire – cast fresh doubt on prospects for a deal to end the war, which began on February â 28 with joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran._x000D_
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Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tehran would “reassess” its diplomatic engagement with Washington after what it called repeated ceasefire violations._x000D_
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“Any diplomatic process requires a minimum stable environment,” Esmaeil Baghaei said._x000D_
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The US strikes lasted about â four hours, with Central Command saying shortly before 9 p.m. ET (0100 GMT Wednesday) that operations had ended._x000D_
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A US official said nearly 20 Iranian targets were hit._x000D_
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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Qeshm Island â and the port of Sirik were attacked._x000D_
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Iranian media also reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, another port city, and later near Jask at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.
