Iran threatens retaliation as Trump issues stark warning: 'We'll hit nuclear site'

President Donald Trump has approved a landmark deal with Saudi Arabia to set up a civilian nuclear program, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing U.S. officials.

The agreement is part of ongoing U.S.-Saudi civil nuclear cooperation efforts to develop nuclear energy for civilian purposes.

"It is designed to give American companies a central role in developing Saudi Arabia's nuclear infrastructure while shutting out other foreign competitors," the outlet reported.

The deal was first negotiated in October 2025 and would stay in effect for 30 years. It is estimated to be worth tens of billions of dollars and Congress must review it.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed that its forces had completed an 11th night of strikes against the Iranian military and its facilities.

“At 8:15 p.m. ET on July 21, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) successfully completed the 11th consecutive evening of strikes against Iran,” the command said in a post on X.

“CENTCOM assets targeted Iranian military operations centers, maritime capabilities, aircraft hangars, drone storage facilities, and military logistics infrastructure to further degrade Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. ” it added.

The command also said that over the past three months, Iran has attacked more than 30 commercial vessels transiting the international waterway vital for regional and global trade.

"The unwarranted attacks have endangered hundreds of innocent mariners and undermined freedom of navigation," CENTCOM said.

Bulgaria looks set to allow U.S. aerial refueling aircraft to support Middle East operations after its Parliamentary Defense Committee approved a proposal to station up to eight U.S. KC-135 tanker aircraft and 250 U.S. military personnel at Bezmer Air Base, according to CNN.

The deployment, the outlet said, would run from July 24 to Oct. 1, but Vice President Iliana Iotova said the move would not make Bulgaria a party to the war with Iran.

The suggested deployment prompted a warning from Tehran with Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei urging the nation to reject the plan, saying any support for U.S. military operations against Iran would make Sofia complicit in what he said was "the crime of aggression and war crimes."

Explosions and air defense activity were reported across multiple parts of Iran on Tuesday night, according to Reuters, after U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced a fresh wave of U.S. military strikes for the 11th consecutive night.

Iran's semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported that a loud explosion was heard in parts of Bushehr.

Meanwhile, several explosions were reported near the southern part of Tabriz in northwestern Iran, according to Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency.

Residents also reported hearing air defense activity in northeastern Tehran, Fars reported, while Iranian state television said air defense systems were active in western, eastern and northeastern parts of the capital.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday forcefully rejected claims that the United States started the war with Iran, telling lawmakers that Tehran has been attacking Americans for decades and arguing that the regime bears responsibility for the conflict.

During a tense exchange with Sen. Chris Van Hollen, Hegseth pushed back after the senator criticized the administration's handling of the war and referenced the secretary's comments about "winning" the conflict.

"I would just note that militarily, I mean, Iran has been completely overmatched, and, and, and crushed from the beginning militarily. Their capabilities are nowhere near ours," Hegseth retorted.

He then disputed Van Hollen's characterization of the conflict. "I would take issue with your characterization that we started this war," Hegseth argued.

"Iran started this war 47 years ago," he added. "And they've killed thousands of Americans, including our brothers on the battlefield in Iraq. Iran has been targeting us for a long time," he said.

Protesters repeatedly interrupted War Secretary Pete Hegseth's testimony Tuesday before the Senate Appropriations Committee, shouting anti-war slogans and holding up signs before Capitol Police escorted them from the hearing room.

As Hegseth began his opening remarks, several protesters interrupted the hearing multiple times.

One protester was heard shouting, "Your hands are bloody," while others held signs reading, "No War on Iran."

Police escorted four protesters out of the hearing room as the disruptions continued.

Hegseth had appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee alongside Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to testify on President Donald Trump's $87.6 billion supplemental funding request for the Iran war, farm assistance, and other administration priorities.

The U.S. military redirected eight commercial vessels and disabled one while continuing to enforce its blockade of Iranian ports, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Tuesday.

“Every operational success in the Middle East begins and ends with service members focused on their missions, including the U.S. blockade against Iran,” the command said in a post shared on X.

“As of July 21, U.S. forces have redirected eight commercial vessels and disabled one to fully enforce the blockade,” CENTCOM confirmed.

Iran's top joint military command said Tuesday that all U.S. interests and those of its allies in the region would be targeted if Washington attacks Iran's nuclear facilities, according to Iranian state media, Reuters reported.

Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the joint military command responsible for coordinating the country's armed forces, also said any U.S. strike on Tehran’s nuclear or other sensitive sites would lead to an expansion of the war in the region, according to state media, as reported by Iran International.

The command warned that U.S. interests and its supporters would face a "powerful assault" if an attack were carried out.

This came after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would be hitting the Pickaxe Mountain area "probably pretty soon."

War Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed Tuesday that the war in Iran has cost an estimated $37.5 billion so far.

Testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee, Hegseth told lawmakers the figure includes both current operational costs and projected expenses through the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30.

"Some of that number captures additional O&M, military pay and other costs that would be anticipated through the fiscal year," Hegseth told Sen. Dick Durbin.

"So some of that anticipates what costs would be going out in the future as well."

Durbin pressed Hegseth to clarify the figure.

"So the new number you've given me is what?" the Illinois Democrat asked.

"$37.5 billion," Hegseth replied.

Durbin followed up by asking what period the estimate covers.

"Through what period of time?"

"Through now for certain aspects of it, but also military pay, O&M and other anticipated costs through Sept. 30, Senator," Hegseth replied.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the U.S. military has the capability to strike Iran's underground Pickaxe Mountain nuclear facility.

Asked by lawmakers at the Senate Appropriations Committee hearing whether the U.S. could destroy whatever is beneath the mountain, Hegseth said he would not discuss specific capabilities.

"A lot of our capabilities are classified," Hegseth said.

"But if anybody in the world can reach anything on God's green earth, it's the United States military, the most powerful military in the world."

"It's all about options and trade-offs," he added.

President Donald Trump had said Tuesday the U.S. will strike Pickaxe Mountain "probably pretty soon," amid reports that Iran has moved nuclear centrifuges — and possibly enriched uranium — to the heavily fortified underground site.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday highlighted the length and human cost of several major U.S. military conflicts, contrasting them with his administration's military operations in Venezuela and Iran.

Trump shared the comparison in a post on Truth Social while Pentagon officials testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on the administration's request for additional funding tied to military operations in Iran.

The president's post listed the length of several wars alongside the number of U.S. military deaths:

Afghanistan War: 20 years, 2,000 dead.

Iraq War: 9 years, 4,600 dead.

Vietnam War: 19 years and 5 months, 58,220 dead.

Korean War: 3 years and 1 month, 36,574 dead.

Venezuela War: 1 day, 0 dead.

Iran military conflict: 4 months, 18 dead.

The message came as War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine appeared before lawmakers to defend the administration's supplemental funding request for military operations connected to the war with Iran.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that President Donald Trump deserves "praise" for ordering military strikes against Iran, arguing the administration fully understood the risks before launching the operation.

Testifying before lawmakers, Hegseth said the administration had carefully considered multiple battlefield scenarios.

"This battlefield and all the dynamics of it, of which the chairman and I are responsible for ensuring the president understands every branch and sequel of what could happen," Hegseth told lawmakers Tuesday.

"And we did."

Hegseth said the possibility of escalation had been anticipated.

"So the fact that those contingencies all were part of the possibility, and we understood that, is all the more reason why Trump deserves the kind of praise he should get for undertaking this effort."

He praised the president for remaining committed to preventing Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.

"Having the courage to ensure that crazy Islamists can't have a nuclear weapon to hold us at issue, and he's been willing to stay committed to that regardless of the challenges," Hegseth added.

The hearing came days after three U.S. service members were killed in the region and after Trump ordered a fresh round of U.S. strikes against Iranian military targets.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers Tuesday that Iran has been left in its weakest military position in decades following U.S. strikes, arguing that the damage inflicted on Tehran's forces underscores the need for Congress to approve additional funding for military operations.

"Iran is at the weakest point militarily it has ever been at in the past decade, certainly maybe in 47 years, as they've gathered effectively a terror arm," Hegseth said.

"And that terror army was built to try to create conventional capabilities to defend against a pursuit of nuclear weapons, which meant thousands of ballistic missiles, many of which we have destroyed. Others of which they have put inside facilities and hidden in underground facilities," he said.

Hegseth acknowledged Iran retains military capabilities despite the U.S. campaign.

"They still have capabilities, no doubt," he said, but argued that the cumulative effect of recent U.S. operations has severely weakened Tehran's military.

"The amount of damage that we've done to them over the course of this series of operations has put them in the worst place they've ever been," Hegseth said.

Gen. Dan Caine told lawmakers on the Senate Appropriations Committee Tuesday that advances in artificial intelligence and increasingly coordinated adversaries are reshaping modern warfare, arguing that the U.S. must move quickly to maintain its military edge.

"I've come to you today to request the necessary funds while we are in the window of opportunity, while time is still on our side," he said.

"The United States of America faces a global list of military challenges in the Middle East, in Europe, and in the Pacific, including nuclear and non-nuclear challenges and the continued threat of terrorism."

"Our adversaries are aligning in their interests, creating simultaneous challenges across multiple domains. They are sharing intelligence, combat capabilities and technology that are accelerating the speed of war, aren't they?" he added.

"It is imperative that Americans understand that the character of war is changing," he added.

He warned that today's battlefield extends "from the seabed to cyberspace" simultaneously and said, "We must be prepared to fight across all of them."

The United Kingdom's new prime minister, Andy Burnham, has approved the use of British military bases by the United States for "defensive strikes against Iran," Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing a source.

The outlet reported that former Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer chaired a COBRA meeting on July 17 to discuss U.K. policy following the resumption of U.S. military operations and concerns over an escalating conflict.

Ministers decided to maintain the existing policy allowing U.S. aircraft to use bases at Diego Garcia and RAF Fairford to counter Iranian missile threats and strike sites used to target shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the source said.

Burnham, who became prime minister on July 20, was briefed on the decision and agreed to continue the previous government's policy, according to Bloomberg's sources.

President Donald Trump also held his first phone call with Burnham on July 20 and said the two leaders had a "very good conversation" about the "outstanding relationship" between the U.S. and the U.K. 

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said sirens had been sounded across the country late Tuesday and urged people to stay calm and head to a safe place.

The warning came amid Iranian missile and drone attacks in the region.

“The siren has been sounded. Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place,” the ministry said in a post on X.

Bahrain had already sounded sirens twice earlier Tuesday.

Iran’s army said it had targeted the U.S.-operated Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain with drones, Reuters reported, citing a statement.

Kuwait also said its air defenses had intercepted Iranian missiles and drones.

Three explosive-laden drones were shot down Tuesday near the U.S. Consulate in Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdistan Region, according to security sources cited by Reuters.

Iraq's state news agency also reported that Erbil International Airport had temporarily suspended flights following the incident.

The reported drone interceptions came just after the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad issued a global security alert warning that escalating tensions in the Middle East could lead to further attacks on U.S. diplomatic facilities.

"Due to escalating tensions in the Middle East, the security situation remains complex, with the potential for unexpected escalation," the embassy said in a statement posted on X.

"U.S. citizens currently in the Middle East should exercise caution and heighten their vigilance, preparing for the possibility of flight cancellations, temporary airspace closures, and disruptions to travel."

"U.S. diplomatic facilities, including those outside the Middle East, have been targeted," it added.

U.S. Central Command released footage Tuesday showing the USS Mason guided-missile destroyer being replenished at sea in regional waters.

The American warship has operated in support of the U.S. military’s blockade of Iranian ports, which was reimposed last week. 

Video released by CENTCOM showed a helicopter delivering supplies to the ship. 

"As of July 20, the U.S. military has redirected 7 commercial vessels and disabled 1 to prevent the ships from leaving or entering Iranian ports," CENTCOM said about the resumed blockade.