Iran live updates: Trump hints at future strikes on Pickaxe Mountain, downplays war

The UKMTO issued alerts on two attacks on vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.

The Indian government reported an attack on an Indian crew Dhow while sailing through the strait. The Omani Royal Navy rescued the surviving crew, UKMTO said.

UKMTO said it is unaware of the status of the vessel.

The second incident was reported northeast of Lima, Oman, where a tanker security officer reported its engine room being struck by two unknown projectiles, according to the UKMTO.

No casualties or environmental impact have been reported in the second incident, according to the UKMTO.

"Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO," the UKMTO said.

-ABC News' Will Gretsky

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran's parliament who led Tehran's delegation in peace talks with the U.S. earlier this year, said on Tuesday that the onus is now on the U.S. to prevent a return to war after Iran delivered what he called a "firm and rational response" in ongoing negotiations.

"Just as the Islamic Republic of Iran stands ready for battle with its finger on the trigger, it has also delivered a firm and rational response to the American side. The ball is now in America's court to prevent war," Ghalibaf said in comments carried by Iran's state-run television network, IRIB.

"Meanwhile, from the military and defensive point of view we are at the highest level of preparedness," Ghalibaf added.

-ABC News' Nasser Atta and Othon Leyva

President Donald Trump on Monday night defended the U.S. war in Iran and floated more action against Iran's nuclear program.

Trump's comments came as U.S. forces conducted what two American officials told ABC News were defensive strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday.

Speaking with Fox News' Sean Hannity, Trump downplayed the war and asserted that the U.S. had not attacked Iran in some time.

Trump also said the U.S. "might have to go after" a facility buried under Iran's Pickaxe Mountain, which is in Iran's Isfahan region and just to the south of the Natanz nuclear complex. The president has repeatedly threatened action against the site.

"We might have to go after Pickaxe, but that's not a big deal. We can do it. And literally we can do that in one hour. Okay? As soon as we want, at any time we want," Trump said.

The president downplayed the conflict, which began with joint U.S.-Israeli strikes in February. "Well, when was the last time we fired anything? This isn't a war. This is a very soft war," Trump said. He continued, "This is not much of a war, Sean, because there hasn't been shooting for months."

-ABC News' Nicholas Kerr

The United States carried out defensive strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, two U.S. officials told ABC News.

The airstrikes do not signal the resumption of major combat operations against Iran, but were the latest limited strike carried out by U.S. forces in recent weeks, an official said.

In recent weeks, Iran has increased the number of attacks directed at commercial ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.

First reported by the Wall Street Journal, the airstrikes were limited in scope and characterized as defensive strikes, the two U.S. officials said.

Monday's U.S. airstrikes on Qeshm Island were in response to an Iranian attack on a U.S. aircraft, said one official.

-ABC News' Luis Martinez