US media have been reporting for days on indications of a possible expansion of US attacks.Image: keystone
The US military said it attacked military targets in Iran again during the night. And the Wall Street Journal reports further signs of an expansion of the war. The latest developments in the Middle East.
July 23, 2026, 04:49July 23, 2026, 05:18
The US military said it attacked military targets in Iran again during the night. The five-hour wave of attacks ended at 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time, the US command responsible for the region, Centcom, announced via the X platform.
The targets included missile and drone depots, coastal surveillance systems and the country’s air defense system. The attacks were intended to prevent future attacks on merchant ships and civilian seafarers, it was said. It was the twelfth night in a row that the US attacked the Islamic Republic.
Shortly before, US President Donald Trump emphasized at an event in Marietta, Georgia, that, in his view, Iran was not yet ready for a deal. Whenever Tehran makes a compromise, the Iranians want to change it again, Trump criticized. «You’re not ready yet. But they will be ready very soon,” he emphasized – which could be interpreted as an indirect threat.
Trump had already threatened Iran very clearly on Wednesday morning (US Eastern Time): In the future, the United States would “bomb and destroy” a bridge or power plant in Iran every time the Islamic Republic shelled a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, he wrote on his Truth Social platform. Bridges and power plants in Tehran or near the capital would also be targeted.
Report: US sends special forces, bombers on standby
Because of the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, which is important for global trade in energy sources such as oil and liquid gas, the Iran war has been escalating again since the beginning of the month.
US media have been reporting for days on indications of a possible expansion of US attacks – for example the relocation of more fighter jets to the region.
The “Wall Street Journal” is now reporting further signs of this. According to flight tracking data and statements from US officials, special forces were deployed to the region last week. In addition, bombers at bases in the USA and Great Britain are in high operational readiness, the newspaper quoted one of the officials as saying. In addition, more than 150 paramedics have arrived in the past few days at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Rhineland-Palatinate, the most important point of contact for the treatment of US soldiers injured in the Middle East.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the troop increase could also be aimed at giving Trump more room for maneuver to take action against the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen. The Islamists announced a “blockade” on Saudi ships on Monday – around a week after a new confrontation with the kingdom, which borders Yemen and has been waging war against the militia for more than ten years. (sda/dpa)