Las Fuerzas Armadas de Estados Unidos lanzaron este miércoles una nueva ola de ataques contra Irán, según confirmó el Comando Central estadounidense (CENTCOM), que indicó que la operación fue ordenada por el presidente Donald Trump.

En un comunicado publicado en la red social X, el CENTCOM informó que “a las 3:00 p.m. ET, las fuerzas estadounidenses lanzaron operaciones para una segunda ola de ataques hoy contra Irán”.

El mando militar explicó que los bombardeos “están dirigidos contra capacidades militares iraníes utilizadas para amenazar a los buques que transitan libremente por el estrecho de Ormuz, una vía navegable internacional vital para el comercio mundial”.

Asimismo, el CENTCOM sostuvo que “el Ejército de Estados Unidos está haciendo rendir cuentas a Irán por instrucciones del comandante en jefe”, en referencia al presidente Donald Trump.

La nueva ofensiva se produce horas después de que Washington confirmara el restablecimiento del bloqueo naval sobre los puertos y costas iraníes y anunciara el desvío de dos buques comerciales que, según el Pentágono, intentaron burlar las restricciones impuestas por Estados Unidos.

Desde la reanudación de las operaciones militares, el conflicto volvió a extenderse por varios frentes de la región. La Guardia Revolucionaria iraní aseguró haber atacado posiciones de la Quinta Flota de Estados Unidos en Baréin, mientras las autoridades bareiníes informaron de la interceptación de proyectiles dirigidos contra objetivos civiles. Jordania también confirmó que sus sistemas de defensa derribaron tres misiles lanzados por Irán hacia su territorio.

La tensión alcanzó además el norte de Irak, donde durante la noche se registraron explosiones en las inmediaciones del consulado estadounidense en Erbil, capital de la región autónoma del Kurdistán iraquí. Hasta el momento, las autoridades no han informado sobre víctimas ni sobre el alcance de esos incidentes.

En paralelo, el presidente Donald Trump endureció su discurso contra Teherán y advirtió que la campaña militar podría ampliarse en los próximos días si el régimen iraní no acepta retomar las negociaciones. “La próxima semana la situación será muy mala para ellos”, declaró durante una entrevista con Fox News.

Pese al recrudecimiento de los combates, los canales diplomáticos no han sido cerrados por completo. Sin embargo, el presidente del Parlamento iraní y principal negociador del régimen, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, sostuvo que el memorando suscrito con Washington perdió vigencia tras la decisión estadounidense de restablecer el bloqueo naval.

“Un memorando de entendimiento solo tiene sentido cuando sus cláusulas son válidas y se cumplen. Si Irán no obtiene ningún beneficio del acuerdo, no tenemos motivos para respetarlo”, afirmó.

El eje de la confrontación continúa siendo el estrecho de Ormuz, paso estratégico por el que circula una parte significativa del comercio mundial de petróleo y gas. Irán volvió a restringir el tránsito por esa vía tras acusar a Estados Unidos de incumplir los compromisos alcanzados, mientras Washington respondió con nuevas operaciones militares y el restablecimiento de las restricciones marítimas contra los puertos iraníes.

El Comando Central de Estados Unidos (CENTCOM) sostuvo que los ataques buscan reducir la capacidad militar del régimen para amenazar la navegación comercial. En las últimas horas, medios estatales iraníes reportaron explosiones en Bandar Abbas, la isla de Qeshm, Bandar Imam Khomeini y posteriormente en Bushehr, ciudad donde se encuentra la única central nuclear civil del país.

El conflicto también comenzó a afectar a la población civil y al transporte marítimo en la región. Un petrolero noruego sufrió una explosión frente a la costa de Omán causada por un artefacto cuya procedencia no fue determinada, mientras Kuwait informó que uno de sus buques navales fue alcanzado durante un ataque iraní con misiles y drones, incidente que dejó cuatro tripulantes heridos.

Trump anunció además que desistió de aplicar un gravamen del 20 % a los buques que atravesaran el estrecho de Ormuz, una medida planteada días atrás. En su lugar, afirmó que impulsará acuerdos comerciales y de inversión con los países del Golfo aliados de Washington.

De acuerdo con el régimen iraní, los bombardeos estadounidenses reanudados la semana pasada han dejado al menos 30 civiles muertos, mientras las Fuerzas Armadas del país informaron que otros siete militares fallecieron durante los ataques ejecutados este miércoles. Entretanto, el primer ministro israelí, Benjamin Netanyahu, advirtió que su país responderá “con dureza” si Irán decide extender sus ataques al territorio israelí.

U.S. troops were seen unloading what Fox News Digital is told was China’s only aid flight sent to Venezuela so far as the country continues to reel from last month’s back-to-back earthquakes.

Photos provided by the U.S. government show an Air-China-branded plane landing at Simon Bolivar Airport on July 6, nearly two weeks after the quakes hit on June 24.

The supplies from the Chinese government were then taken off the aircraft by U.S. soldiers, who have been leading the disaster response and aid distribution efforts.

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In the photos provided to Fox News Digital, U.S. service members were seen lifting large packages out of shipping containers, using large vehicles to move and organize pallets on the tarmac and loading boxes into trucks for transport.

«Secretary Rubio promised the Trump Administration’s response to the devastating earthquakes in Venezuela would be big, fast, and effective. We continue to deliver on that commitment,» State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

«While some countries say they’ll deliver aid — weeks after natural disasters occur — America shows up, unloads the aid, and ensures that assistance reaches the hands of those who truly need it thanks to our close coordination with the Department of War and the great public-private partnerships our Department has spearheaded,» he added.

The U.S. has moved more than 1.5 million pounds of assistance into Venezuela since the earthquakes struck on June 24, according to the State Department.

A big part of that was repairing Simon Bolivar Airport, which sits just outside the capital city of Caracas, after its runways were seriously damaged in the natural disaster.

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U.S. soldier directs a wheel loader as it moves pallets of aid brought by the Chinese government on July 6, 2026. (United States Government)

«The U.S. military was able to repair that airfield and get it up and running to allow for C-17 and other large aircrafts to land there. And that’s very important as we continue to obviously get international relief supplies in,» a senior State Department official told reporters in late June.

Currently, one runway is operational at the airport, and one of the first American flights into the airport was carrying forklifts to help get supplies unloaded off future flights, according to the State Department official.

Florida-based Global Empowerment Mission (GEM), one of the leading nonprofits gathering and sending aid to Venezuela, said it aims to deliver 100,000 boxes of supplies monthly for the next three to six months, according to The Associated Press.

U.S soldier drives a wheel loader full of supplies on the Simon Bolivar Airport tarmac on July 6, 2026. (United States Government)

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According to GEM’s website, it has shipped nearly 1 million pounds of aid. This includes over 38,000 hygiene kits, more than 27,000 tents and tarps and 48 generators.

GEM founder and president Michael Capponi told the AP that delivering aid to Venezuela now is a «whole different animal» compared to when he tried to send supplies during the reign of Nicolás Maduro.

Maduro, who was captured and deposed during a U.S.-led raid on Jan. 3, did not allow Capponi into the country.

A U.S. soldier undoes wrapping on Chinese aid to Venezuela on July 6, 2026. (United States Government)

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«We land a private plane, it gets unloaded by U.S. soldiers, it goes in a truck we pay for and to a warehouse that we completely control. It doesn’t touch the hands of the Venezuelan government,» he said.

The State Department said on July 9 that the U.S. government has committed more than $386 million for financial assistance to Venezuela flowing through trusted partner groups. Meanwhile, the Chinese foreign minister announced in late June a $14.72 million commitment for financial and material aid to Venezuela, according to Chinese state-run media.

Nearly two weeks after the earthquakes struck, Chinese state media reported about what they called the first batch of aid arriving to Simon Bolivar International Airport on July 6. State media said Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil and Chinese Ambassador to Venezuela Lan Hu received the shipment, said to include tents and generators, at the airport.

In late June, the U.S. also mobilized more than 300 search and rescue personnel throughout the country. The Miami Herald reported last week that those teams left after they «completed their mission.»

Relatives of missing people search for victims amid the rubble of a collapsed building in Caraballeda, La Guaira State, Venezuela on July 13, 2026, following the June 24 twin earthquakes. (Martin Bernetti / AFP via Getty Images)

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As of Tuesday, 4,734 people have died from the earthquakes, according to figures released by the Venezuelan government, cited by Reuters. Additionally, there are at least 16,740 people injured, while nearly 18,000 people are homeless.

The earthquakes have destroyed 190 buildings and damaged over 850, Venezuelan officials told the AP.

Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Of the many political crusades the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., undertook, few were as front of mind for him than crippling Russia’s war machine in its conflict with Ukraine.

Yet during the last year-and-a-half of President Donald Trump’s second term, momentum behind a bone-crushing sanctions package against Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin would start and stop, with hopes rising and falling for its proponents every few months.

Earlier this year, Graham had similarly gotten a green light from the White House for a different iteration of the package.

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«It’s never going back on the shelf because President Trump believes he needs it,» Graham told Fox News Digital at the time. «I think he needs it.»

Hours before his death, he again got confirmation that the White House supported his and Sen. Richard Blumenthal’s, D-Conn., latest offering.

«Senator Graham and I were told, very authoritatively, literally just a couple of hours before his death, that the White House was OK with this,» Blumenthal said. «We were exalted, he was as exuberant and as over the moon as I’ve ever seen him.»

And on Tuesday, the same day that Graham’s sister, Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., was sworn in, Blumenthal and a bipartisan group of over a dozen senators unveiled the long-awaited Russia sanctions package.

«I guess I’m going to begin by channeling my inner Lindsey Graham to say, ‘This is a big effing deal,’» Blumenthal said.

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The Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026 is the culmination of more than a year of work and closed-door negotiations across the aisle and with 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. It’s one that this time many senators believe it can pass.

Many of the core aspects of the legislation are the same: direct sanctions on Putin, Russian officials and Russian military leaders, up to 500% tariffs on Russian imports, tariffs of up to 100% on countries buying Russian energy, like China and India, and allowing Trump flexibility for when to turn off some aspects of the sanctions.

Key changes to the newly unveiled package include adding a «national interest certification» for Trump’s sanction waiver authority and incorporating sanctions on the myriad ships and tankers that comprise Russia’s «shadow fleet» hauling energy exports under the radar.

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Hours before Lindsey Graham’s death, the White House backed his Russia sanctions package. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

A source familiar with the negotiations to craft the package noted that «this is the only product that currently has buy-in from everybody.»

«And it’s likely the only product that is going to move forward and put pressure on Russia the way we would all like to see it,» they said.

Still, the political winds in Washington, D.C., can shift at a moment’s notice.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told Fox News Digital that he believed «anything is a candidate» to fall victim to external political fights, like Democrats blocking the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) over the Iran war or Republicans fearing another shutdown.

Then there’s the question of what could happen to the package in the House.

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«Anything you send to the House right now probably has the possibility of other things getting attached to it, but I’m hoping, at least over here, there’s some critical mass behind this,» Thune said.

Meanwhile, lawmakers who support the tranche of sanctions view it as a lasting mark of Graham’s legacy in the Senate, and one of the key pieces of work that he left unfinished after his sudden passing on Sunday.

«I’ve known this man for 32 years, and I’m willing to say this is Lindsey Graham’s greatest achievement when it comes to saving lives,» Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., said.