Iran vows tougher response after US strike kills four at wedding

Iran announced it would pursue a tougher line in its conflict with the United States after a U.S. attack on a wedding in the southern city of Sirik killed four people, including a child, and injured more than 50 others. The Iranian Red Crescent confirmed the casualties and described the strike as a "war crime."

Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei posted on X that the bombing was part of "America's desperate struggle to conceal its failure," while Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei warned that Iran's new strategy would "shatter" U.S. foundations on the battlefield, in diplomacy and against the economic blockade.

The United States did not directly address the wedding attack. CENTCOM spokesman Tim Hawkins said the U.S. military never targets civilians, contrasting it with Iran's Revolutionary Guard.

The incident follows a series of escalations that began with U.S. strikes on Iranian targets on Sunday, the first known attacks in weeks. Iran responded with attacks on U.S. bases in Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Iraq's Kurdistan region, and reported strikes on oil tankers, one of which killed two Filipino sailors.

Iranian officials, including top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, condemned the U.S. action, labeling the United States as "Satan" in a social-media post.

The fighting has also caused civilian casualties elsewhere, with missile attacks in Khuzestan province killing seven and wounding eight, and a U.S. strike in Kermanshah province killing four Revolutionary Guard personnel.

Iranian citizens expressed sorrow over the renewed hostilities, with one resident saying the only victims are the Iranian people, while the father of the bride described the wedding site damage as "very saddening" but thanked that the casualties were not higher.