The conflict between the United States and Iran intensified on Thursday after Tehran launched retaliatory attacks against U.S. military positions across the Gulf region, declaring that recent American strikes had rendered an earlier ceasefire "practically meaningless."

According to Iranian officials, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted U.S. military facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan in response to overnight American airstrikes on Iranian military installations. Iranian authorities described the attacks as a direct response to what they called continued U.S. aggression.

The United States confirmed that it completed a new round of strikes overnight after previously carrying out attacks on Iranian targets. Washington has stated that the military action was launched following the downing of a U.S. Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz, an incident it attributed to Iranian forces.

The escalating confrontation has also affected commercial shipping in the Gulf of Oman. India confirmed that three Indian sailors were killed after a U.S. strike hit the Palau-flagged oil tanker Settebello off the coast of Oman. The vessel was reportedly targeted by U.S. forces for allegedly violating a blockade on Iranian oil shipments. Twenty-one other Indian crew members were rescued.

Indian authorities condemned the attack and renewed calls for de-escalation, warning that continued hostilities pose a serious threat to civilian shipping and regional stability.

Regional security concerns have grown further following reports that Jordan also came under missile attack as part of Iran's latest wave of retaliatory strikes. Several countries in the region have heightened security measures, while international leaders continue to urge restraint amid fears that the conflict could expand into a broader regional war.