Tehran was shaken by a new series of explosions on Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump said the war with Iran might end within two or three weeks.
The West Asia conflict began in January after the United States (US) and Israel carried out airstrikes across Iran, killing supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It rapidly escalated into a wider regional war, driving up oil and gas prices and raising fears for the global economy.
Trump, whose rhetoric has alternated between aggressive and conciliatory, said late Tuesday that the fighting could be over in “two weeks, maybe three”.
The White House announced he would deliver “an important update on Iran” to the nation at 9 pm Wednesday (0100 GMT Thursday).
Tehran has maintained that no negotiations are underway and says it has not responded to a reported 15-point proposal from Washington aimed at ending the war.
However, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that the Islamic republic has the “necessary will” to end the conflict—provided its adversaries guarantee it will not resume.
With diplomacy uncertain, Iranian state television reported fresh attacks on Tehran on Wednesday, with explosions heard across the capital.
An AFP journalist said strikes hit an area near the former US embassy—now a museum known as the “Den of Spies” and a symbol of longstanding hostility between Tehran and Washington.
According to Iranian media, strikes also targeted steel facilities in central and southwestern Iran, causing “significant damage and destruction”.
The Israeli military confirmed carrying out the strikes and said it intercepted an Iranian missile attack that wounded 14 people, including an 11-year-old girl.
Israel also reported that its air defenses intercepted a missile launched from Yemen—the third such attack by Iran-backed Houthi rebels since they joined the conflict over the weekend.
Lebanon: Seven killed in strikes
The conflict has killed thousands across the region and displaced millions.
In Lebanon, the health ministry reported that seven people were killed in strikes near south Beirut on Wednesday. The Israeli military said it had targeted a senior Hezbollah commander.
Lebanese security and Hezbollah sources told AFP the strike killed Yousef Hashem, Hezbollah’s top commander for Iraq military affairs.
AFP correspondents at the scene described a street covered in debris and charred wreckage.
“Nobody knows what`s happening,” resident Hassan Jalwan said, adding that “displaced people have been sleeping in the open”.
Lebanon was drawn into the conflict on March 2, when the Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel.
Israel has responded with extensive airstrikes and a ground offensive that Lebanon’s health ministry says has killed more than 1,200 people.
US allies in the Gulf have also been affected, with Iran launching retaliatory attacks on countries it accuses of supporting strikes against it.
A Bangladeshi national was killed in the United Arab Emirates by falling shrapnel from an intercepted drone.
Kuwait reported that its international airport was hit by an Iranian drone attack that caused “a large fire” at fuel storage tanks. The National Bank of Kuwait said it would close its headquarters for two days “in the interest of everyone`s safety”.
In Bahrain, authorities said a fire broke out at a business facility “as a result of the Iranian aggression”, while Saudi Arabia reported intercepting several drones.
A tanker was also struck in waters off Qatar, according to a British maritime security agency, which reported damage but no casualties.
“Every day, we hear the sound of drones,” said Waad Abdulrazaq, a 31-year-old truck driver near Iraq’s Erbil international airport, an area frequently targeted by pro-Iran groups.
“We hear them in the morning, and we hear them at night. We can no longer sleep or live in peace.”
West Asia conflict: Economic fallout
Iran continues to exert control over the Strait of Hormuz, a key route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes.
Average US gasoline prices rose above $4 per gallon this week for the first time in four years, while inflation increased in Europe and governments globally began rolling out support measures.
Markets reacted positively to Trump’s remarks about a possible end to the war, with oil prices falling on Wednesday and stock markets rising across Europe and Asia.
The US has not disclosed who it is communicating with in Iran, which denies any formal negotiations.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera that he continues to receive messages from US envoy Steve Witkoff, “directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations”.
Earlier in the week, Trump warned that if Iran refused a deal, US forces would “obliterate” its oil infrastructure, including wells, the Kharg Island export terminal, and possibly water desalination plants.
Britain said Wednesday it would host a meeting of around 35 countries this week to discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
(With AFP inputs)