Iran live updates: Trump excuses Lutnick saying there were no US deaths in Iran war

President Donald Trump posted to social media on Thursday defending Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who erroneously said on Wednesday that no Americans had been killed in the ongoing war with Iran.

In an interview with CNBC, Lutnick touted the administration's strategy of attempting an "economic choke out" of Iran and said that "there haven't been American deaths."

Eighteen Americans have been killed so far in the conflict, which has now been active for more than six months.

Trump wrote on social media on Thursday that Lutnick had "Venezuela on his mind" when he made his remarks.

Also on Thursday morning, Lutnick posted to X saying he "misspoke" and offering his condolences to the families of the 18 dead servicemembers.

"I was thinking about the Venezuelan military operation where no service members died," Lutnick wrote.

-ABC News' Mary Bruce and Jennifer Pereira

Iran's army claimed Thursday morning that it conducted overnight strikes on U.S. military bases in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.

In statements carried by official and semiofficial Iranian news agencies, Iran's army said it used missiles and drones to target satellite communication systems, equipment depots and fighter jet hangars at Ahmed al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait.

The statements also claimed attacks on troop positions and radar systems at Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE.

-ABC News' Morgan Winsor

The Kuwait Army said in a post to X on Thursday morning that its air defenses were "confronting hostile missile and drone attacks" launched from Iran.

-ABC News' Will Gretsky

President Donald Trump said the renewed military campaign in Iran would last "not too long" but did not offer a concrete timeline.

"As soon as it's over, which I don't think will be very much longer. I don't know how much more they can take, but you know whatever, it is, doesn't matter," he said.

Trump made a point to emphasize that his decisions regarding Iran are not influenced by the looming midterm elections, with the president pointing out that he is not on the ballot.

Pressed on "what’s left to strike" in Iran, Trump pivoted to tout the fact that the U.S. is "controlling" the Strait of Hormuz and suggested the strikes on Iran are in response to their aggression against vessels moving through the waterway.

"We've controlled and we are controlling the Hormuz Strait. We are bringing lots of boats out every day with millions of barrels of oil. We are, for the most part, doing it without trouble. Every once in a while, they shoot a drone and knock it down, but we have control," Trump said.

Trump then repeated that the U.S. targeted Iran’s radar systems, which he said Iran was about to finish rebuilding -- despite his repeated claims that Iran’s military systems have been defeated.

"They were trying to rebuild their radar systems and a missile system and a mine drop. We got rid of all the mines in the Hormuz Strait. They were trying to build a rocket that drops mines. Who does that?" Trump said. "It was almost finished, so we took it out. We saw that they were building. We see everything that they're doing. They can't move -- They can't go to the bathroom without us seeing it."

-ABC News' Emily Chang