Iran strikes US bases across the Gulf have intensified a six-day surge in hostilities, as Tehran targeted American military positions in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain even as Washington continued pounding sites across Iran overnight. The exchange of fire has pushed the fragile ceasefire framework between the two nations to the brink of collapse.
The US military confirmed it carried out a six-hour wave of strikes across multiple Iranian locations, describing the operation as an effort to “degrade Iran’s ability to threaten innocent mariners” moving through the Strait of Hormuz. The renewed assault came shortly after President Donald Trump warned Tehran it had “better behave” or face further military consequences if it refused to return to the negotiating table.
Just a day earlier, Trump had gone further, threatening to strike Iran’s energy infrastructure directly should Tehran continue avoiding talks. Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, pushed back firmly in comments to state media, insisting the country had “no reason” to honor any agreement that failed to serve its own interests. He also linked Iran’s national security directly to preserving what he called “Iranian arrangements” governing the Strait of Hormuz.
According to US Central Command, the latest wave of American strikes hit command centres, air defence installations and coastal surveillance facilities scattered throughout Iran, including sites in the port city of Bandar Abbas and on Greater Tunb Island. Iranian state media reported explosions ringing out across the country, with air defence systems activated over Tehran in response to the incoming attacks.
The retaliation was swift. Gulf allies of the United States quickly reported being targeted in the aftermath, with Kuwait’s military confirming it intercepted incoming drone attacks. Bahrain’s interior ministry urged citizens to remain calm and move toward the nearest safe location as the country came under fire as well.
Iran’s military also claimed responsibility for striking US communication systems and fuel storage facilities inside Jordan, marking yet another front in the widening regional confrontation. The scale and spread of these strikes highlight how quickly the conflict has expanded beyond Iranian and American territory alone.
At the center of the crisis remains the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway off Iran’s coast that Tehran effectively shut down in response to earlier US-Israeli strikes. The passage remains closed, compounding the economic fallout from the conflict. On Tuesday, the US confirmed it had reinstated its naval blockade of Iranian ports, reversing a policy that had been lifted only last month under a memorandum of understanding between the two countries.
Tensions escalated further the following day when American forces fired on and disabled an unladen, Curacao-flagged oil tanker that Centcom said was attempting to reach a blockaded Iranian port. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps responded with a pointed warning, cautioning the US to “expect the closure of other oil and gas export routes that serve the interests of the United States and its allies,” though it stopped short of specifying which routes might be affected.
The continued fighting has reinforced just how critical the Strait of Hormuz is to the global economy. Oil prices have surged sharply as tanker traffic through the narrow shipping lane has ground to a near standstill, leaving international markets bracing for further disruption as the conflict shows no sign of easing.
