• IRGC targets US facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar, claims US assets destroyed
• US military says ‘140 Iranian military’ sites targeted to degrade its ability to disrupt shipping
• Tehran says Hormuz closed for navigation due to ‘illegal’ US action; Washington insists ‘traffic is flowing’
• Oman summons Iranian envoy to protest attack as Gulf states denounce strikes
• UN chief calls for de-escalation
• OIC condemns Iranian attacks as violation of sovereignty, UN charter
• 23 crew members rescued after ship struck in Strait of Hormuz
TEHRAN: Traffic in the Strait of Hormuz was disrupted once again after Iranian forces shut down the vital maritime route after exchanging heavy missile and drone assaults with US forces, with multiple US facilities in the Gulf states coming under fire on Sunday.
The strikes extended to Qatar, a mediator in ceasefire talks that had not come under attack since April, while the United Arab Emirates, which had not been targeted since early May, said its air defences had engaged missiles and drones from Iran.
According to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, they destroyed a command-and-control centre and drone hangars in US ally Jordan, targeted a US radar site in Kuwait, attacked US aircraft carrier support and refuelling platforms in Oman and destroyed a jet maintenance centre and command facility in Qatar.
The attacks were in response to the US strikes on Saturday, in which the US forces hit 140 Iranian military targets across Iran “to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels freely transiting the strait”.
Iranian state media reported explosions in several port cities and said an Iranian army officer had been killed. According to the Iranian media, there had been missile attacks and explosions around the port of Bandar Abbas, home to military facilities on the strait, and nearby Qeshm Island, on Sunday afternoon, as the US reportedly launched another round of attacks.
President Donald Trump claimed the United States hit Iran hard in response to its latest attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said the United States and Iran had been close to “a deal” on Saturday. “They were giving up everything, and then all of a sudden two hours after that they hit a ship with a drone. These people, there is something wrong with them,” AFP quoted him as saying.
Hormuz conundrum
The latest hostilities between the US and Iran stem from disagreement on the status of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said late on Saturday it had closed the waterway after firing a warning shot that struck a vessel travelling on an unauthorised route. On Sunday, it said it had disabled a second vessel.
Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Command, reiterated that the Strait of Hormuz is closed, warning that if one enters the Strait after trusting Centcom will be “leaving in lifeboat”.
Iran’s recently created Persian Gulf Strait Authority said on Sunday that passage through the strait was not currently possible due to “recent illegal movements of the United States military forces in the region”. Permits would be issued “as soon as stability and calm are restored”, it said.
The US, however, insisted that the strait was open for business. “Iran does not control the strait. Traffic is flowing,” it said. The US Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Centre reiterated guidance that, despite a severe security threat, an “expanded” southern route near Oman was available for two-way traffic.
Iran’s Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia told state television that Washington was trying to impose an unauthorised shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz, contrary to the Islamabad MoU that assigns control of transit arrangements to Iran, Mehr news agency reported.
“We are standing behind this with full authority and will firmly defend the rights of the Iranian people as stipulated in the agreement.” He said the US should consider its regional allies and not expose them to further insecurity, warning that “whenever they have taken action against Iran, they have received their response, and the same happened last night”.
Meanwhile, Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted on X on Sunday, “The era of one-sided deals is OVER. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.”
Attacks on US basis in Gulf states
Qatar, which has previously said it would not act as a mediator so long as it was under attack, said three people had been injured by falling shrapnel. It said Iran was “fully legally responsible” for the attack. It also advised all vessels, including leisure boats, fishing boats and jet skis, to suspend activities.
Oman said it had summoned Iran’s ambassador to protest over drone attacks in two regions and the US embassy in Oman told its nationals in Duqm and Musandam to shelter in place. India said one of its nationals was missing after an attack on the container ship GFS Galaxy off the coast of Oman. Oman said 23 crew members had been rescued.
The latest round of hostilities came after talks in Oman on Saturday between Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi. Iran said the talks were aimed at coordinating arrangements in the Strait of Hormuz, and were set to continue with a Qatari presence.
The UAE said it detected missile threats outside its borders, Bahrain said it intercepted several Iranian aerial attacks, Jordan reported missile strikes. Kuwait’s army reported damage from strikes, and said an attack on an oil drilling platform injured a worker.
Condemnations
The attacks on the Gulf countries were denounced by the Gulf states, the UN, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), among others.
In a statement issued by his spokesperson, the secretary general said it was deeply concerned by the serious escalation and renewed military confrontations in the Gulf, including the Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the attacks by the United States on Iran, and the attacks by Iran on targets in the neighbouring countries.
These attacks must all stop. He calls on all parties to exercise maximum restraint, avoid further escalatory action and take immediate steps to de-escalate.
The OIC also issued a statement condemning Iran’s latest attacks. The organisation said the strikes on Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Jordan are a “flagrant and ongoing violation of the sovereignty of these states”.
“The ongoing attacks and assaults on ships and obstruction of international trade are a clear breach of international law and the United Nations Charter and the Organisation’s Charter,” it added.
Bahrain’s military said Iran continued its “heinous missile and drone attacks targeting civilians”, adding that air defence systems intercepted the attacks.
Jordan described Iranian attacks on its Gulf neighbours as a “blatant violation of their sovereignty, a threat to their security, stability, and territorial integrity, a dangerous escalation, and a flagrant breach of international law and the Charter of the United Nations”.
Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2026