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By The South Asia Times

TEHRAN - Iranian officials said recent US airstrikes in the southern province of Hormozgan killed at least seven civilians and wounded several others, including a one-year-old child, as fighting between Washington and Tehran intensified despite ongoing diplomatic efforts.

Ahmad Moradi, a member of Iran's parliament representing Hormozgan Province, told the semi-official Tasnim News Agency that U.S. attacks carried out over the past two nights killed "about seven to eight people," all of them civilians.

According to the report, one strike hit a bridge in the province, where two family vehicles were passing, killing six people. Another strike reportedly hit the Tappeh Allah Akbar neighborhood in the provincial capital, Bandar Abbas, killing a woman and seriously injuring a one-year-old child, who reportedly underwent an amputation.

Tasnim also reported that a fuel tanker driver supplying gasoline to service stations was killed in a fire triggered during the attacks.

The US military had not immediately commented on the Iranian claims, and the reported casualty figures could not be independently verified.

Conflict enters new phase

The latest strikes come amid a renewed escalation in the months-long conflict between the United States and Iran.

The current war began on Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iranian military and nuclear-related targets, with US President Donald Trump announcing the start of what he described as "major combat operations."

During the opening phase of the conflict, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in U.S.-Israeli strikes, according to Iranian authorities. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, subsequently assumed the position of Supreme Leader.

A two-week ceasefire brokered between Washington and Tehran took effect on April 8, creating space for diplomacy.

Pakistan later hosted the first direct face-to-face talks between U.S. and Iranian officials in 47 years in April. While those negotiations ended without a breakthrough, both sides agreed to continue diplomatic engagement.

Subsequent high-level negotiations took place in Switzerland on June 20, following the signing of a preliminary framework aimed at ending hostilities, and later in Doha on July 1, where mediators reported "positive progress."

However, the diplomatic momentum faltered after the United States launched fresh strikes on July 8, saying they were in response to attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks, prompting Trump to declare on July 10 that the ceasefire was "over," although negotiations have continued through intermediaries.

Regional spillover

Over the past week, the conflict has increasingly spread across the Gulf.

Iran has launched missile and drone strikes against US military facilities in several Gulf countries hosting American forces, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain, according to statements issued by Iranian authorities and regional governments. Some attacks targeted military installations, while air defense systems intercepted other incoming projectiles.

The widening regional confrontation has raised concerns over the security of energy infrastructure and commercial shipping in the Gulf, a waterway through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies pass.

Despite the renewed military exchanges, diplomatic channels between Washington and Tehran remain open, with mediators continuing efforts to restore a ceasefire and prevent a broader regional conflict