Smoke above the port of Jask, in Hormozgan province, Iran, on July 24, 2026. (Credit: Social Media photo/via Reuters)
President Donald Trump said Friday he is considering expanding U.S. bombing campaigns against Iran as the regional conflict widens, with Saudi Arabia now striking Houthi rebels in Yemen.
U.S. media reported Friday that Trump met in the morning with his closest advisers to discuss a broader military operation against Iran as he grows increasingly frustrated by the diplomatic deadlock. Speaking to reporters at the White House, however, Trump said he had not yet made a decision.
’’In fact, we’re talking to them right now,’’ Trump said of Iranian leaders. ‘’I think they’re getting more and more serious by the day, maybe for an obvious reason,’’ he added, referring to the nearly two weeks of U.S. airstrikes on Iran.
Trump warned that Iran could either reach a deal with Washington or face ‘’a much worse level’’ of bombing.
’’We are ready, prepared to go, but we’re talking to them, so as long as we’re talking … we’ll see what comes of it,’’ he said.
Earlier Friday, Iran said it had retaliated against U.S. strikes by attacking military facilities used by U.S. forces in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait. However, for the first time in two weeks, the U.S. military announced no overnight strikes on Iran from Friday into Saturday.
‘All necessary measures’
Iran considers any facility in the Middle East made available to the U.S. military to be a legitimate target. On Friday, the Revolutionary Guard urged civilians in the region to stay away from sites housing U.S. forces.
’’For every proud Iranian citizen of the Islamic Republic killed, an American soldier will be sent to hell,’’ Army chief Ali Abdollahi said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran reserves the right to take ‘’all necessary measures’’ against any country ‘’participating, cooperating or helping’’ the United States.
Since fighting resumed between Tehran and Washington on July 7, clashes have centered around the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway for global oil and gas shipments.
In recent days, however, the conflict has spread across the Arabian Peninsula. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels announced a blockade targeting Saudi ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
A Saudi vessel was struck again Friday in the Red Sea, sustaining minor damage, a Saudi transportation official told state media.
In response, Saudi Arabia launched strikes on the Houthi-controlled port city of Hodeida on Yemen’s western coast, rebel media reported. A telecommunications building was among the targets.
Hope for peace
Residents of Hodeida said they heard explosions, with one witness saying blasts were felt near the port.
The Houthis condemned the strikes on civilian infrastructure and vowed to retaliate. The group later claimed to have fired a missile toward Jizan in southwestern Saudi Arabia.
Earlier, Saudi Arabia’s civil defense agency issued a brief security alert in Jizan without providing further details.
In Washington, Trump also warned Iran’s allies, Russia and China, against supplying Tehran with weapons. He said the United States is investigating whether Moscow and Beijing provided Iran with intelligence that may have contributed to attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Friday in Kyrgyzstan with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, and called for renewed negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
’’The door for negotiations, once opened, should not be closed, and as long as there is hope for peace, it should not be given up,’’ Wang said after the meeting, according to China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency.
Wang added that Beijing, a strategic partner of Tehran, firmly supports Iran in safeguarding its sovereignty, security and national dignity.
