New attacks have hit Tehran and Iranian industrial sites, with Iran rejecting the existence of negotiations on Wednesday after Donald Trump mentioned ending the war within “two or three weeks,” with or without an agreement.
Triggered on February 28 by Israeli-American strikes, the war in the Middle East, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and shaken the global economy, shows no signs of easing.
The perimeter wall of the former US embassy in Iran, a symbolic site of hostility between the two countries in central Tehran, was damaged on Wednesday morning. The day before, steel complexes in the center and southwest of the country were also targeted.
The American president is expected to provide “important new information about Iran” in a speech planned for the evening, at 9:00 pm (01:00 GMT Thursday) according to the White House.
Trump, who has been vacillating between threats and reassuring statements for weeks, mentioned on Tuesday evening an imminent end to the conflict: “All I have to do is leave Iran, and we will do so very soon,” he said, speaking of a timeframe of “two, maybe three weeks.”
– “Two existential threats” dismissed –
He who promised on Monday to “annihilate” the strategic Iranian oil refinery of Kharg and oil wells if no agreement was reached “quickly” on the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, this time reassured that the conclusion of an agreement was “unimportant.”
This strategic waterway, through which a fifth of global oil normally flows, has been almost completely blocked by Iran since the beginning of the conflict. The UK announced it would “rally” around thirty countries “this week” to restore maritime transport in the area.
Iran, on its part, has rejected any negotiation, stating that it did not respond to the American plan consisting of 15 points transmitted by Donald Trump last week to end the war.
“I receive messages directly from (US special envoy Steve) Witkoff, as before, and that doesn’t mean we are in negotiations,” emphasized the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abbas Araghchi, on Al Jazeera.
While Donald Trump hinted at an exit strategy from the conflict, his Israeli ally claimed to have achieved some of its objectives by dealing “a severe blow to two existential threats” emanating from Iran.
During the brief conflict in June 2025, “we dismissed the immediate threat of Iran acquiring nuclear weapons and numerous ballistic missiles, and with (the ongoing military campaign), we have had additional success by crushing the regime’s industrial capacity to produce these weapons,” assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
But for him, “the campaign is not over”: “we will strengthen security zones around us and achieve our goals.”
– Market hopes –
Carried by hopes of de-escalation, markets rebounded: in Paris, the CAC 40 gained 2% by midday, as did London and Frankfurt, while in Tokyo, the Nikkei closed up 5.24%. At the same time, the price of Brent crude oil fell below $100 per barrel.
Off the coast of Qatar, a tanker was damaged by a missile strike attributed to Iran. In the UAE, a Bangladeshi was killed and an Indian national was injured by drone debris. The central bank of Kuwait announced the closure of its headquarters for two days due to Iranian attacks.
In Israel, emergency services reported 14 injuries after new Iranian missile strikes.
The country also faced a new attack from the Houthis, an Iranian-allied militia in Yemen, their third since joining the conflict on Saturday. In their statement, they claim to have targeted “sensitive sites” in the southern part of the country.
In Tel Aviv and its region, AFP witnessed children being taken care of by emergency services, damaged vehicles, and shattered windows on the second floor of a residential building.
On the other side, the Iranian state television reported explosions in the north, east, and center of Tehran on Wednesday, while Israel stated it launched a “significant wave of strikes” in the capital.
In addition to the wall surrounding the former US embassy, residential buildings were also hit in strikes that injured several people according to the Mehr agency. The Russian embassy also reported strikes on the Russian Orthodox cathedral.
– “New occupation” of Lebanon –
In Lebanon, targeted by Israel since early March, a Hezbollah officer, the military leader for the movement’s operations in Iraq and a pro-Iranian group, was killed in an Israeli strike according to several sources. The government reported seven deaths in the Beirut region.
Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the war on March 2 by launching an attack on Israel to avenge the death of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, warned that his country intends to occupy part of southern Lebanon once the war is over, with Beirut expressing concern about a “new occupation” of the country, as did the UN.
