U.S. Launches “Very Heavy” Strike on Iran After Jordan Incident; Kuwait Condemns Fresh Wave of Attacks
Wertynews.com – The United States carried out what President Trump described as a “very heavy attack” on Iranian targets Tuesday night, a blow delivered in direct response to what he characterized as a shot fired at American forces in Jordan. The president told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday that the strikes eliminated new Iranian equipment positioned along the Strait of Hormuz and signaled that Washington remains ready to repeat the operation at will.
“It was a very heavy attack last night,” Trump said. “And we’re prepared to do another one anytime we want.”
The president framed the exchange in blunt, almost dismissive terms, comparing the Iranian provocation to a minor gesture and the American response to a decisive counterpunch.
“They gave a little love tap, but we hit them very hard last night,” he said.
Videos circulating from southern Iran captured the aftermath of the bombardment, though Iranian officials had not yet issued a full accounting of damage or casualties at the time of reporting.
Kuwait Escalates Diplomatic Language After Dawn Strikes
Less than 24 hours after the American bombardment, Kuwait’s foreign ministry issued a statement condemning the latest round of Iranian missile and drone attacks on its territory in what it called the “strongest” possible terms. The strikes, which began at dawn Thursday, were labeled a flagrant violation of Kuwaiti sovereignty, a direct threat to the safety of citizens and residents, and a serious breach of international law, the United Nations Charter, and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2817.
The ministry went further, arguing that the persistence of such attacks reflects a fundamentally hostile posture by Tehran and constitutes a dangerous escalation that undermines regional stability while systematically sabotaging diplomatic channels aimed at de-escalation.
Kuwait explicitly invoked its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the U.N. Charter, stating it reserves full authority to take all necessary measures to protect its territory, vital infrastructure, and population against any further aggression.
The Kuwait Army confirmed that its air-defense systems were actively intercepting incoming threats and urged residents to follow official safety instructions. It clarified that any explosions heard across the country were the result of those interceptions rather than direct impacts.
Red Sea Shipping Under Houthi Watch; Saudi Transit Halted
Meanwhile, the maritime dimension of the conflict continued to tighten. A military source within the Houthi movement in Yemen told the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar that rebel forces maintain around-the-clock surveillance of Saudi shipping in the southern Red Sea. The source asserted that transit of all Saudi commercial vessels and oil tankers through that corridor has been suspended entirely.
On the Persian Gulf side, the U.S. military’s Central Command reported that it had redirected 86 commercial vessels as of Wednesday, an increase from 84 the previous day. CENTCOM added that the Navy had disabled three vessels and boarded two others to “ensure compliance” with the blockade.
“The U.S. Navy continues to strictly enforce the U.S. blockade against Iran,” CENTCOM stated in a social media post.
The Naming Problem: Operation Epic Fury’s Lingering Shadow
An internal Air Force email from August, obtained by CBS News, revealed that the Pentagon had been instructing personnel to stop using the name “Operation Epic Fury” to describe ongoing military activity in Iran — roughly three months after the Trump administration publicly declared the operation concluded.
The Pentagon confirmed to CBS News on Wednesday that Operation Epic Fury officially ended on May 5. That same day, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters at the White House:
“The operation is over. Epic Fury is — the president notified Congress — we’re done with that stage of it. We’re now on to this Project Freedom.”
Four days before that announcement, Trump had told Congress that the “hostilities” had “terminated.” Yet the U.S. and Iran have continued exchanging intermittent fire since that formal end date, punctuated by lengthy pauses in combat, including a ceasefire that took effect in early April. For months, both the Pentagon and U.S. Central Command declined to disclose the operation’s official termination date, leaving the public with an ambiguous picture of whether the campaign was truly over or merely paused.
Economic Fallout: Gas Prices and the Oval Office’s Retailer Meeting
The conflict’s economic ripple effects reached American consumers directly. As of Wednesday, the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline stood at $4.12, nearly a dollar above the level recorded one year earlier, according to AAA data.
Trump said he had spoken with oil executives about price gouging the day before his Wednesday remarks. A White House readout of the Tuesday meeting described a gathering of nearly a dozen small, midsize, and large refiners and distributors convened to discuss expanding domestic refining capacity.
Pressed on whether price gouging was on the agenda, the president confirmed it was.
“These were mostly retailers, and I want the retail prices to come down,” he said.
The convergence of a naval blockade, halted Saudi tanker transit, active missile exchanges, and a domestic fuel market running well above year-ago levels underscores how a regional military confrontation can transmit costs rapidly into everyday American life — a dynamic that appears to have shaped the administration’s decision to pair military posturing with direct engagement over refinery economics.
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