The US intensified its strikes on Iran on Thursday, hitting targets further north as American forces also fired into a ship — Curacao-flagged oil tanker Belma — which the US accused of trying to break its naval blockade on the Islamic Republic. Iran retaliated with missile and drone fire targeting US allies in the region before dawn and warned its attacks may escalate.

Strikes also reached into areas around Iran’s capital, Tehran, for the first time in the latest clashes. Attacks also targeted Semnan province — home to Iran’s ballistic missile and space programs — and around the provinces of Hamedan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Sistan, and Baluchistan.