The United States has launched new strikes against Iran following a drone attack on a Panamanian-flagged ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday.
U.S. Central Command (Centcom) said it struck several targets across Iran in direct response to “sustained attacks” on commercial shipping.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) told state media it had fired missiles and drones at U.S. infrastructure in Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation.
After the gunfight, the United States and Iran accused each other of violating the ceasefire agreement.
“Iran was given the opportunity to respect the ceasefire agreement but chose not to comply when Iranian forces launched a one-way attack drone that struck the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker MT Kiku,” Centcom said in a statement.
In response, U.S. warplanes said they struck 10 Iranian military targets in various locations in and around the Strait of Hormuz. These include: Storage facilities for military equipment, communication systems, air defense bases and drones.
The IRGC said in a statement that the United States attacked five Iranian coastal bases “under the pretext of the IRGC navy confronting the attacking ships.”
In retaliation, the IRGC fired ballistic missiles and drones at “eight key infrastructure facilities” at Kuwait’s Ali al-Salem base and the Fifth Naval Fleet at Port Salman in Bahrain, “destroying them,” it said.
A U.S. official told Reuters there were no reported U.S. casualties or significant impact or damage to U.S. facilities in the Middle East.
The IRGC said that in accordance with the memorandum of understanding signed earlier this month, Iran has prepared measures to control traffic and navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and will deal more strongly with violating vessels in the future than in the past.
“Potential enemy attacks under any pretext, even against minor targets, as occurred last night and tonight, will be met with a crushing response,” the statement said.
He also accused the United States of violating the ceasefire agreed upon in the memorandum of understanding between the two countries and warned, “This will completely halt the ceasefire process.”
Iran’s Foreign Ministry also condemned the brutal attack as a violation of the ceasefire, adding that it showed that the United States does not attach any value or credibility to its promises and that breaking promises is part of its nature.
Shortly after the recent US attack on Iran was announced, President Trump told Truth Social that it was “very possible” that Tehran would never learn.
“There may come a point when we are no longer rational and must militarily complete what we have successfully begun,” he wrote Saturday evening.
The post continued: “If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
In the hours following the U.S. attack, Kuwait and Bahrain reported that their air defense systems had been activated.
“Kuwait’s air defense forces are currently facing hostile missile and drone attacks,” the Kuwaiti military said in a statement shared with
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry urged citizens to “remain calm and evacuate to the nearest safe place.”
Centcom said commercial shipping continued to operate in the Strait of Hormuz.
The strike came less than a day after the United States launched retaliatory strikes against Iran in response to the June 25 drone attack on the Singapore-flagged cargo ship MV Ever Lovely.
Centcom described the US strike as a “robust response” to the attack on the cargo ship, adding that “the Iranian military’s unprovoked attack on a commercial vessel clearly violates the ceasefire.”
Tehran said the cargo ship was attacked because it used an unauthorized route to transit the Gulf waterway, and said the retaliatory strikes amounted to a violation of the U.S. ceasefire.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday morning that it had launched more attacks on targets linked to U.S. forces in response and blamed the “American regime for violating the treaty” for the situation.
The United States and Iran agreed on June 17 to end hostilities under a 14-point memorandum of understanding, which called for Iran to “use its best efforts to provide free passage for commercial vessels for 60 days.”
The Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for oil and gas transport, was effectively closed by Tehran after the US and Israel attacked Iran in late February.
The closure of the vital channel has sent global oil prices soaring and blocked shipments of other critical raw materials such as fertilizers.
