Continued attacks drag in more powers as mediators appeal for talks to resume

The United States Central Command said it launched strikes against Iran following Tehran's attempted attacks on US forces in the Middle East, heightening concerns about a widening conflict that has dragged more countries into the fray this week.

The US command said its forces completed a heavy wave of strikes against Iran at 10 pm on Wednesday "in response to yesterday's attempted missile attacks on US forces".

The security situation continues to claim lives in the region.

READ MORE: US forces launch new strikes on Iran as conflict widens

On Thursday, the Chinese embassy in Kuwait said a Nepali driver working for a Chinese company had been killed as Washington and Tehran engaged in tit-for-tat strikes. The Chinese embassy also confirmed that no Chinese citizens were killed or injured in the incident.

Kuwait's Ministry of Defense said an Iranian attack targeted a building belonging to a Chinese company in the north of the country, killing one worker and causing extensive material damage to the facility and property losses for the company.

Jordan's military said on Thursday that its air defenses shot down five Iranian missiles targeting its territory, adding that the attack caused no casualties.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps later confirmed launching an attack on Jordan's al-Azraq base, saying that three F-35 aircraft were completely destroyed.

In a statement, the IRGC said the US "used the occupied bases in your country (Jordan) to launch an airstrike with bunker-buster bombs on two residential houses, targeting two modest homes belonging to local residents on Qeshm Island".

In Iran, three members of a family — a two-year-old toddler along with his parents — were killed, while two other children from the same family were injured following a US strike in Qeshm, the IRNA news agency reported.

The latest violence came immediately after the US conducted a joint precision strike with Saudi Arabia targeting Iran-backed groups in Iraq.

The exchanges saw Iran draw condemnation from Gulf Arab countries while Washington and Riyadh's actions also drew rebukes from Iran and Iraq.

During a daily news conference of the United Nations Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General on Wednesday, Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had raised concerns that the conflict could widen if the parties do not return to the negotiating table.

US President Donald Trump told Fox News in an interview that the US would be "hitting Iran hard" and vowed to give Iran a beating.

This followed the Iranian Foreign Ministry condemning joint US-Saudi attacks in Iraq and days after Trump said the US was holding talks with Iran.

The IRGC warned on Thursday that countries "involved in assisting the aggressor will face harsh consequences if they do not correct their behavior".

ALSO READ: CENTCOM: Iran's ‘surprise attack’ on US forces intercepted

In a statement that day, the IRGC announced that two oil tankers attempted to leave the "unsafe southern route" of the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday night after being prompted by US aircraft.

Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad that the country is trying to bring Iran and the US back to the table under the memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the conflict that Pakistan brokered last month.

"We are doing our utmost to bring all parties back to the Islamabad MoU," Andrabi said, adding that Pakistan was encouraging the countries to "fully adhere to their commitments to hold technical talks".

Cui Haipei in Dubai and agencies contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at jan@chinadailyapac.com