President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military, government and infrastructure sites.
Delegations from the U.S. and Iran entered negotiations in June aimed at a war-ending deal based on a memorandum of understanding signed by both countries.
The U.S. and Iran have nonetheless continued to exchange strikes, with the strategic Strait of Hormuz the primary flashpoint.
Both Kuwait and Jordan confirmed new Iranian attacks on Thursday, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it targeted U.S. bases in both countries.
Kuwait's Armed Forces said in a post to X that its air defenses were responding to "hostile drone threats" on Thursday.
Jordan's official news agency PETRA, meanwhile, said on Thursday that the country's air defenses downed three Iranian missiles and six drones over the previous 24 hours. One missile was not intercepted and "landed in a remote, uninhabited area," the agency said.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Jul 23, 2026, 6:13 AM EDT
Iran will 'pay a price,' Rubio says when asked if US will escalate
While attending the ASEAN summit in Manilla, Philippines, on Thursday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that Iran is "going to pay a price" when asked if the U.S. was planning to escalate its ongoing strike campaign in the coming days.
"The president's policy is a head for an eye," Rubio said. "They will pay a very heavy price for the things they're doing. They're already paying a very heavy price."
"They're probably not ready to do a deal yet, but they will be soon because the price they're paying is very high, despite their tough talk and their flowery language and their stupid Lego videos they put out," Rubio said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to the press on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministers Meeting in Pasay, Metro Manila, on July 23, 2026.
Brendan Smialowski/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Rubio denied reports that Russia is helping Iran to target its strikes on U.S. bases and personnel, telling reporters there is "nothing that anyone's doing to help Iran" target Americans.
The secretary of state did not directly respond to Trump's social media posts threatening to bomb Iran's infrastructure each time they target ships in the Strait of Hormuz when asked by reporters. However, Rubio suggested Iran is "begging" the U.S. "every single day" to make a deal both "directly and indirectly."
"The price will continue to get higher every single night until they come to their senses. Right now, apparently they haven't come to their senses, and so the president doesn't see a lot of utility in responding to their overtures at this point," he said.
-ABC News' Joe Simonetti, Alex Ederson and Tierra Cunningham
Jul 23, 2026, 4:49 AM EDT
IRGC claims new attacks on US bases in Kuwait, Jordan
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday morning that it targeted U.S. military bases in Kuwait and Jordan in a new wave of strikes, in a statement carried by Iranian state media.
The IRGC described the attacks as retaliation against the U.S. and not the Kuwaiti or Jordanian people.
The latest Iranian attacks came after the U.S. military's 12th consecutive night of airstrikes against Iran on Wednesday.
-ABC News' Morgan Winsor
Jul 23, 2026, 2:57 AM EDT
CENTCOM says it redirected 9 ships, 'disabled' 1 in Iran blockade
U.S. Central Command said in a statement late on Wednesday that it completed its 12th consecutive night of strikes on Iran.
CENTCOM said that the latest wave of attacks targeted "maritime capabilities, missile and drone storage facilities, coastal surveillance sites and air defense assets."
"The strikes further degrade Iran's ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels," CENTCOM said.
CENTCOM said it also redirected nine commercial vessels and "disabled" another, continuing to enforce the naval blockade of Iran's ports.
Scattered debris and smoke are seen at an unknown location following during what U.S. Central Command said were strikes on Iran, in this screengrab taken from a handout video released on July 22, 2026.
