GEOFF BENNETT: Welcome to the "News Hour."

The U.S.

and Israel's war with Iran shows no sign of slowing today, with both sides trading strikes and vowing to keep up the attacks.

U.S.

officials say the campaign has destroyed most of Iran's ability to produce nuclear fuel, while President Donald Trump says U.S.

forces have also struck sea mine-related targets tied to Iranian threats in the Strait of Hormuz.

AMNA NAWAZ: This comes as the Pentagon says about 140 U.S.

troops have been wounded in the war, including over 100 who have returned to duty.

Stephanie Sy begins our coverage.

STEPHANIE SY: In an Eastern neighborhood of Tehran, Red Crescent rescue workers locate a person in the rubble.

It's not clear if they're injured or dead.

But a broken doll signals a family lived here, anguish and ashes left in the wake of an airstrike this rescue worker blames on the - - quote -- "Zionist regime."

U.S.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth today warned the U.S.

will not relent until the Iranian regime is defeated.

PETE HEGSETH, U.S.

Defense Secretary: Iran stands alone, and they are badly losing.

Today will be yet again our most intense day of strikes inside Iran, the most fighters, the most bombers, the most strikes, intelligence more refined and better than ever.

STEPHANIE SY: President Donald Trump also promised further escalation over Iran's threats to the Strait of Hormuz.

This afternoon, Trump responded to reports that the Iranians are placing mines in the critical oil route, writing on TRUTH Social: "If for any reason mines were placed and they were not removed, the military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before."

Meanwhile, Democrats, including Senate Armed Services Committee member Richard Blumenthal came out of a briefing on Iran raising the specter of a deployment of American ground troops.

SEN.

RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): I am most concerned about the threat to American lives of potentially deploying our sons and daughters on the ground in Iran.

We seem to be on a path toward deploying American troops on the ground in Iran.

STEPHANIE SY: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later responded.

KAROLINE LEAVITT, White House Press Secretary: I wouldn't take Democrats at their word.

As for boots on the ground, the president has talked about this repeatedly.

Wisely, he does not rule options out as commander in chief.

STEPHANIE SY: But neither in the crucial oil shipping lane nor elsewhere has Iran shown signs of surrender, launching missiles on a U.S.

base in northern Iraq, targeting a residential building in the kingdom of Bahrain's capital city.

That attack killed at least one person and injured eight.

Iranian forces also launched drone strikes on an Israeli oil refinery in Haifa, a major industrial city.

Despite mounting global pressure, the battered Iranian regime today made it clear there will not be a cease-fire, with Iran's Parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher, saying, "We must strike the aggressor in the mouth."

An Iranian security official warned President Trump: "Watch out for yourself, lest you be eliminated."

And an Iranian military spokesperson told Iranian media the country, -- quote -- "will not allow the export of a single liter of oil from the region."

Meanwhile, in Israel, air raid sirens blared across the city today, a new normal warning residents to take shelter against incoming Iranian strikes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the aim of the war is to enable Iranian citizens to rid themselves of -- quote -- "tyranny."

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, Israeli Prime Minister (through translator): Ultimately, it's up to them.

But there's no doubt that, through the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones and there is more to come.

STEPHANIE SY: But, for many Iranians, the cost of speaking out is too great.

EBRAHIM EIDI, Iranian Citizen (through translator): People are afraid to go to the streets.

They are not afraid of America.

Unfortunately, they are afraid of their own government.

STEPHANIE SY: At this remote mountain pass in Eastern Turkey, displaced travelers are saddled with fear and exhaustion.

They are some of the tens of thousands currently fleeing Iran.

But others are traveling back to the families they left.

For 45-year-old Leila, being with her family, even in danger, feels more bearable than death.

LEILA, Iranian Citizen: I cannot guard, be against bomb.

But when I feel I can with them together, maybe we together die.

STEPHANIE SY: For Leila and so many Iranians, there is no obvious escape.

It's now a war zone, but it's still home.

for the PBS "News Hour," I'm Stephanie Sy.