US bombing to 'get much worse' if Iran doesn't halt attacks: Trump

Washington: US President Donald Trump warned Wednesday that US bombing of Iran will increase significantly if Tehran continues to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

"This is in retribution for yesterday's bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will get much worse!" the US president posted on social media over a picture of an apparent bombing of a site in Iran.

Trump reinforced that message when speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One, returning from a NATO summit in Turkey.

"We just hit them very hard, and I say we hit them 20 to one. Every time they hit us, we're going to hit them 20," Trump told reporters. "And we did it last night. They did a little something today, but it was really retribution for last night."

The strikes come a day after the U.S. military hit a variety of military sites and port facilities following Iran’s targeting of several merchant vessels off the coast of Oman. Iranian state media reported explosions including in the port city of Bandar Abbas on the strait and in Sirik, another southern coastal city.

Earlier at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Trump renewed past threats to strike Iran’s civilian infrastructure, including electric plants and desalination plants and to seize the oil-production hub of Kharg Island.

The U.S. will also, Trump announced, lift sanctions on Turkey that have barred its access to F-35 jets and lift Syria’s terrorism designation.

Meanwhile, Iran's southern port city of Chabahar experienced power cuts after the United States announced another round of airstrikes against Iran, according to CNN, citing Iranian state media.

Around 10 explosions were heard in Chabahar and the nearby coastal city of Konarak, Iran's state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.

"Electricity has also been cut in parts of the city of Chabahar," IRNA said, adding that the incident was under investigation.

Meanwhile, explosions were also reported in the Iranian city of Bushehr, CNN reported, citing the semi-official Fars news agency. The exact location of the blasts was not immediately clear, Fars reported. Bushehr is home to Iran's Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.

Explosions were also reported on Iran's Abu Musa Island, Al Jazeera reported, citing Press TV, with three additional blasts heard near Tahrouyi village in the southern city of Sirik.