IN BRIEF
- US officials reportedly warn the bombing campaign had reached its limits as costs and military pressures grew.
- Iran has accused Ukraine of attacking a merchant vessel, raising fresh tensions beyond the conflict.
The United States has paused its bombing campaign against Iran for a second consecutive night, with both the US and Iran signalling a willingness to give diplomacy another chance after nearly two weeks of escalating military action.
The pause follows reports senior US military officials advised US President Donald Trump the bombing campaign had reached the limits of its effectiveness, while warning US stocks of key munitions were being depleted.
US ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told Fox News that Trump had suspended strikes to create space for negotiations, while an Iranian official told the Reuters news agency Iran would also refrain from retaliatory attacks for as long as the US held its fire.
"Iran's position remains 'attack for attack': if the attacks stop, Iran will also halt its operations," the official said, adding Iran remained prepared to respond if US attacks resumed.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said messages continued to be exchanged with the US through mediators, although he accused the US of previously having "betrayed" negotiations.
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Strikes before the pause
Before the latest pause, the US carried out a 13th consecutive night of strikes on Friday, targeting what the military said were Iranian command centres, drone storage facilities and maritime capabilities linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Iranian state media reported at least four people were killed in the south-western province of Khuzestan, while Iran responded by launching drones and missiles towards US military facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
Authorities in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait said their air defence systems intercepted many of the attacks.
Mounting cost of conflict
The pause comes as the financial and military toll of the conflict continues to grow.
Repeated Iranian attacks on US military bases across the Middle East have left parts of the US' regional military network heavily damaged.
The attacks have hit facilities in Kuwait, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, with defence experts saying they have exposed vulnerabilities in sites once considered secure, and signalled a new chapter for the US' longstanding military strategy in the Middle East.
According to Pentagon figures, the war has already cost the United States US$37.5 billion ($53.6 billion), with politicians approving further military spending as concerns mount over the long-term impact on its defence capabilities.
Senior military officials have reportedly warned the campaign has stretched US weapons stockpiles, particularly missile defence systems and other high-value munitions, while repeated Iranian strikes have damaged military bases across the Middle East.
The conflict has also taken a heavy human toll, with the Pentagon reporting the deaths of 18 US service members since the war began.
Fresh tensions after Ukraine vessel strike
Meanwhile, another flashpoint has emerged after Iran accused Ukraine of attacking one of its merchant vessels in the Caspian Sea.
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the strike, alleging it had been carried out "at Israel's behest" and warning the attack "cannot go unanswered".
In a post on X, Araghchi described the strike as a "blatant UN Charter violation".
Iran says the explosion aboard the vessel killed one sailor and injured another. Ukrainian officials have said they targeted ships transporting military cargo linked to Iran and Russia.
The incident adds another layer of complexity to an already volatile regional conflict, even as indirect messages continue to be exchanged between Iran and the US in an effort to keep the current pause in fighting from collapsing.
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