Heavy explosions as US pounds Iranian city (VIDEOS)

Heavy explosions were reported in the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz on Friday local time as the US carried out strikes for the 13th consecutive night.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said US forces targeted command centers, drone sites, telecommunications towers, coastal surveillance sites, and naval assets to “further diminish the threat Iran poses to civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”

Iranian media reported strikes in central and southern parts of the country, including the city of Khorramabad near the Iraqi border and the port city of Jask on the southern coast.

Videos posted on social media show explosions and large fires in Ahvaz.

Four people were killed and five injured in Ahvaz, Press TV reported, citing officials in Khuzestan Province.

CENTCOM released footage of strikes on military vehicles, port facilities, and small vessels.

The US has stepped up its attacks in recent days, targeting maritime surveillance towers at ports and bridges in the southern province of Hormozgan.

Iran’s retaliatory strikes killed four American service members over the weekend, marking the first US combat fatalities in several months.

The hostilities continue amid reports that the US deployed additional forces to the region, including bombers and commando units, as President Donald Trump considers expanding the war.

Iran has remained defiant in the face of Trump’s demands, insisting that it has the right to control traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and accusing the US of violating a memorandum of understanding signed last month.