State Department tells Americans worldwide to 'exercise increased caution'
The war entered its fourth week on Saturday.
President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israel strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes and his son Mojtaba Khamenei was chosen to succeed him. Iran is responding with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Iran is also attempting to block some shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.
Watch special coverage on Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
Key Headlines
- Strait of Hormuz 'is not closed,' Iranian foreign minister says
- Iran says Strait of Hormuz open to all except 'enemies,' state media, Iranian president say
- 'Iran endangers the entire world,' Netanyahu says
- Iran warns of retaliatory strikes if US attacks power plants, state media says
- Trump threatens to 'hit and obliterate' Iranian power plants if Strait of Hormuz not opened in 48 hours
Hegseth says families of fallen soldiers told them 'finish this'
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said he joined President Donald Trump at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Wednesday to honor the six service members killed when their KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq last week.
"We grieved with their families, and we listened what I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve. Was the same from family after family, they said, 'Finish this. Honor their sacrifice. Do not waver. Do not stop until the job is done,'" Hegseth said at a Pentagon briefing Thursday.
"My response, along with that of the president, was simple, of course, 'we will finish this. We will honor their sacrifice,'" Hegseth said.
Drone hits Saudi Red Sea refinery
An Iranian drone struck a Saudi Aramco refinery in Yanbu, on the Red Sea, on Thursday, according to the Saudi Ministry of Defense.
"A drone fell in the Samref refinery and the damage is being assessed," the ministry said in a statement.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had issued warnings for several Gulf energy production sites, including the refinery in Yanbu, after Wednesday’s Israeli strikes on the South Pars Gas Field, the largest in Iran.
Kuwait earlier on Thursday said an Iranian drone had struck one of its refineries.
-ABC News' Lama Hasan and Zoe Magee
Oil, natural gas prices climb in volatile trading
Strikes by Iran on Gulf nations' energy production facilities pushed oil and gas futures higher in volatile trading on Thursday.
The benchmark for European gas surged by about 24% after Iran on Wednesday released retaliatory strikes targeting energy sites in the Gulf.
Qatari authorities said Iranian ballistic missile attacks caused fires and "extensive damage" at the Ras Laffan terminal, which carries about a fifth of global liquid natural gas. Kuwait also on Thursday said one of its refineries had been struck by a drone. Those attacks came after Israel on Wednesday targeted Iran's largest gas field.
The Dutch Title Transfer Facility, which is widely seen as the European benchmark for natural gas, saw forward-looking contracts for next month climb about 24% in midmorning trading on Thursday.
Brent crude oil prices, which are also a benchmark for global trading, climbed by about 6%, hitting $116 per barrel for contracts to purchase oil in May.
Hegseth, Caine to address reporters on Iran
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are scheduled to hold a press conference at 8 a.m. ET on Thursday, according to the Department of Defense.