US-Israeli aggression on Iran: What happened on 29th day of the imposed war

By Press TV Website Staff

Twenty-nine days into the US-Israeli war on Iran, launched on February 28 with the assassination of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, US-Israeli aggression continued to target Iran’s civilian infrastructure.

Overnight strikes on Saturday targeted multiple districts of the capital Tehran, while airstrikes also struck areas in Isfahan, Garmdareh, Shahriar, Karaj and Zanjan.

Civilian casualties were reported across several provinces, including children and women.

Iranian armed forces, meanwhile, launched fresh waves of retaliatory strikes against American assets across the Persian Gulf region, sinking six American landing craft, hitting a US aircraft, and destroying a warehouse of Ukrainian anti-drone systems in Dubai.

As the unprovoked and illegal war enters its fifth week, the stated objectives of the Israeli-American war alliance have failed to materialize.

Foreign analysts describe it as a stalemated war of attrition, drawing comparisons to Ukraine.

On Wall Street, market declines are "turning into a full-blown crash." And the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed to American and allied vessels, with global supply chains beginning to buckle under the strain.

The following are the key developments that took place on Day 29 of the war:

US-Israeli attacks on Iran

• Overnight airstrikes by the US and Israel targeted multiple residential areas in Tehran. Loud explosions were reported in districts 1, 4, 9, and 18 of the capital.
• Iran University of Science and Technology was also targeted. Reports confirmed the university complex came under attack during the overnight US-Israeli bombing campaign.
• Airstrikes struck multiple other provinces as well. Since the early hours of Saturday, areas in Isfahan, Garmdareh, Shahriar, and Karaj were also targeted by the US and Israel air attacks.
• Israeli warplanes also attacked Iranian nuclear sites and industrial plants, with the International Atomic Energy Agency reporting that two Iranian nuclear facilities, including a uranium processing plant, were struck.
• In an aggressive US and Israeli attack by the American-Zionist coalition on a residential apartment in Zanjan, at least five civilians were killed.
• Civilian water infrastructure was struck in the bordering province of Khuzestan. The water source in Haftkel city was hit by enemy projectiles. 
• The Shahid Absalan Clinic in Minab, located adjacent to the Shajareh Tayyibeh Elementary School in Minab, was struck twice by American-Zionist drone attacks, inflicting significant damage on the medical facility.
• One hundred twenty-two cluster bombs were discovered in southern Fars province. The IRGC announced the discovery and destruction of cluster bombs dropped by American-Israeli fighter jets on civilians in the village of Kafri in Shiraz and another city. 

Iran's retaliatory strikes

• The IRGC Navy struck American-Israeli positions in the port of Al-Shuyukh, coastlines, and the port of Dubai. Six American Landing Craft Utility were hit using ballistic missiles and Qader-380 cruise missiles. Three vessels sank immediately; the remaining sustained damage.
• A simultaneous drone operation targeted gathering centres of American drone unit officers on the coast and at a Dubai hotel. As per the IRGC statement, a large number of American soldiers were killed.
• The IRGC Aerospace Force launched missile and drone attacks on heavy industries belonging to the US and Israel in the occupied territories and other locations, destroying parts of them.
• IRGC air defence system shot down an American MQ-9 strategic unmanned aircraft in the skies of Shiraz.
• An American F-16 fighter jet was struck in southern Fars province before it could land at a Saudi airport. Israeli media reported that an American F-16 fighter jet is currently making an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia.
• As per the Wall Street Journal, several American aircraft were damaged in Iran's missile attack on the Amir Sultan base in Saudi Arabia. Many American soldiers were also injured in the retaliatory attacks on the American base. Iran's attack on the Sultan base in Saudi Arabia highlighted the shortage of American interceptor missiles, CBS wrote.
• A warehouse storing anti-drone systems belonging to Ukraine, which existed in Dubai to assist the American army and where 21 Ukrainians were present, was targeted in a combined operation by the IRGC Aerospace Force and Navy. The fate of the Ukrainian forces (at least 21) remains unknown.
• Israel's Broadcasting Authority announced that Iranian missiles struck 11 points across Tel Aviv in the fresh wave of True Promise 4.
• A major global aluminium company, the second largest supplier of the product, said its smelter site suffered "significant" damage from Iranian missile and drone attacks on Abu Dhabi. 
• A huge fire broke out at Kuwait International Airport after a drone attack hit fuel tanks there. 

US-Israeli war objectives in question

• US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington expects to complete its Iran war objectives in the "next couple of weeks," leaving Iran "weaker," and claimed the US can achieve its goals without ground troops.
• US Central Command acknowledged that more than 300 American soldiers have been wounded since the war began on February 28.
• The Foreign Affairs reported: "What has transpired is more akin to Russia's war in Ukraine than Washington's swift intervention in Venezuela. Iran's fierce response has led to a war of attrition and stalemate." The analysis added that the US "has no clear path to achieving a decisive victory and is at risk of becoming entangled in an endless war," concluding that Washington will likely be forced to accept a negotiated outcome.
• JD Vance, US vice president, stated: "We are not interested in being in Iran for a year or two. We're handling things, we're going to get out of there soon, and gas prices will go down again."
• German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the war is unlikely to lead to "regime change" in Iran, pointing to past conflicts like Afghanistan as evidence that such efforts "mostly gone wrong."

Iran's diplomatic stance

• Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would exact a "heavy price for Israeli crimes" after fresh attacks on nuclear sites and two of the country's largest steel factories.
• President Masoud Pezeshkian emphasised in a social media post: "We have repeatedly stated that Iran does not carry out pre-emptive attacks, but in response to attacks on infrastructure and economic centres, we will give a firm response to the aggressive enemy." He added, "I tell the countries of the region, if you seek development and security, do not allow our enemies to manage the war from your countries."
• Tehran has rejected the American 15-point peace plan as "one-sided and unfair," presenting five non-negotiable demands. US envoy Steve Witkoff said he expects meetings with Iran "this week" and is waiting for Tehran's response.

Trump's statements and war policy

• In remarks at a Saudi investment forum in Miami, US President Donald Trump disclosed that USS Gerald R. Ford was attacked "from 17 directions," forcing American forces to retreat to save their lives. He described Iranian aircraft launching "every 32 seconds" in the attack. The Pentagon had previously claimed the carrier was incapacitated by a "fire in the laundry room."
• Trump said the war with Iran is "not finished yet," adding that the US still has "another 3,554 targets left to hit in Iran" and that this "will be done pretty quickly."
• Trump said NATO allies "weren't there" when asked to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, despite the US spending "hundreds of billions" protecting them. "I've always said NATO is a paper tiger. And I always said we help NATO, but they'll never help us."
• Contrasting NATO's inaction, Trump said: "Unlike NATO, Saudi Arabia fought, Qatar fought, the UAE. fought, Bahrain fought, and Kuwait fought." He also suggested the US would scale back NATO spending due to alliance members' reluctance to intervene in this war.
• Trump called on more West Asian countries to sign the “Abraham Accords,” the agreement from his first term that saw Israel “normalise relations” with the UAE and Bahrain.
• Trump referred to the Strait of Hormuz as “Trump Strait.”  He said, "They have to open the 'Trump Strait,' I mean the Strait of Hormuz... The fake news media will say I said that by mistake, but when I do something, it's no coincidence, not a big deal.

Regional resistance fronts

• Israeli troops entered Khiam and clashed with Hezbollah near Tyre as Israel pushes to occupy the Lebanese territory up to the Litani River.
• Hezbollah said it attacked Israeli tanks and fired at a warplane over Beirut. Hezbollah forces have fiercely resisted the Israeli advance, having carried out 82 operations against Israeli troops within 24 hours.
• Yemen's Ansarullah resistance group launched ballistic missiles targeting "sensitive Israeli military sites in southern occupied Palestine," describing it as part of "direct military intervention" in support of US-Israeli aggression against Iran, marking the beginning of their direct military intervention.
• A young Bahraini man, Sayed Mohammed Al-Mousawi, died in custody after being subjected to brutal torture by the Al Khalifa regime, which failed to extract false confessions from him regarding Iran, according to local sources.
• Two prominent Lebanese journalists, Fatima Fatouni, Ali Shuaiba and their cameraman, Mohammad Fatouni, were killed in an Israeli strike on a car in the southern sector of Lebanon.
• The IRGC denounced a US-Israeli drone strike on the residence of the president of Iraq's Kurdistan Region, calling it "a clear act of terrorism.

US military deployments

• The USS Tripoli reportedly arrived in the region carrying approximately 2,500 Marines and 2,500 sailors, part of the US Navy's ready group typically based in Okinawa. The New York Times reported they are intended to be part of Trump's effort to “open” the Strait of Hormuz.
• The USS George H.W. Bush is expected to deploy near the Persian Gulf waters, according to a Western media source.
• The USS Gerald R. Ford, which had been participating in operations against Iran before a March 12 fire, has anchored in Split, Croatia, after repairs in Crete.

Regional diplomacy

• Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held a one-hour call with President Pezeshkian, with the Iranian president stressing "the need to build trust in order to facilitate talks and mediation." Turkey said talks with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt could take place in Pakistan this weekend as Islamabad mediates between Iran and the US.
• Reuters reported that Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait, behind closed doors, are calling for a quick end to the war, fearing economic consequences and retaliatory actions. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain say they are prepared to bear the brunt of escalation and will not accept an Iran after the war that retains the ability to use the Strait of Hormuz as leverage.
• The President of Turkey warned that the continuation of the war will impose high costs not only on the parties involved but on the entire world.

Global economic fallout

• To prevent a "massive humanitarian crisis," the United Nations established a new task force led by Jorge Moreira da Silva. It aims to ensure ships carrying fertiliser and raw materials can safely cross the Strait of Hormuz, warning that maritime trade disruptions could severely affect global agricultural production and humanitarian needs.
• Agence France-Presse reported that the Prime Minister of Thailand announced his country has reached an agreement with Iran for the passage of its ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
• Brent crude prices have increased 53 percent since February 27, the day before the American-Zionist aggression against Iran, while US crude has risen 45 percent since then.
• Bloomberg reported: "The market declines that began following the start of the Iran war are turning into a full-blown crash on Wall Street."
• Egypt ordered shops, restaurants, and shopping malls to close at 9 PM to curb energy bills that have more than doubled because of the war. Ethiopians slept in their cars during hours-long queues for petrol as war-induced shortages took hold. Between 6,000 and 8,000 tonnes of tea worth $24 million are stranded at Kenya's Mombasa port due to disrupted shipping routes through the Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz. About 65 percent of the East African tea market has been affected.
• Russia sent its second large shipment of humanitarian aid to Iran, including 313 tons of medical equipment to Iran.