Escalating tensions in the Persian Gulf have taken another turn, as Iran retaliated against targets associated with United States forces. This move comes in response to recent US airstrikes on Iran’s southern coastline. Both nations continue to point fingers, accusing each other of breaching an agreement intended to bring a halt to the four-month-long conflict.
The Iranian foreign ministry has not disclosed the precise locations of these “defensive” strikes carried out on Saturday. In their statement, they slammed the US for conducting “barbaric airstrikes” on their coastal monitoring sites, a move Iran claims also infringes upon the United Nations Charter.
Meanwhile, Bahrain, which is the current host of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, expressed outrage over what it identified as an Iranian drone strike within its territorial bounds. Bahrain denounced this as a blatant breach of its sovereignty and an imminent threat to its security. The country also emphasized its right to defend itself against such aggressions.
In the face of these allegations, the United States has yet to issue an immediate response to Iran’s claim of targeting American interests. A pattern of targeting US allies has been noted in the region, apparently aimed at weakening American influence during the ongoing dispute.
According to Iranian state television, the Revolutionary Guards retaliated decisively after US operations allegedly struck a communications tower located in the port city of Sirik. This development underlines the deepening hostilities that threaten regional stability.
The US military said its forces struck Iranian missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar locations on Friday in response to an Iranian attack on a cargo ship transiting the strategic Strait of Hormuz on Thursday.
In a statement on Saturday, the Iranian foreign ministry said the attacks were “a blatant violation” of the memorandum of understanding to end the war.
Iran has not acknowledged responsibility for the attack on the cargo ship but asserted its authority to regulate shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, saying vessels must comply with routes designated by Iran and warning Gulf states against siding with the US.
It also said the Iran-US interim agreement gave it control over ship traffic through the strategic waterway.
US President Donald Trump blamed the attack on Iran and said it violated last week’s agreement.
“The unwarranted aggression against commercial shipping by Iranian forces clearly violated the ceasefire,” US Central Command said in its statement announcing the strikes, which it called “a powerful response to yesterday’s attack on a commercial ship that was transiting the Strait of Hormuz”.
The US military said it would continue to provide “safe passage coordination and support” to commercial vessels transiting the strait.
Iranian state media, citing an unnamed military source, reported the strike at the port of Sirik after an explosion was heard there.
The source said several warning shots had been fired from Sirik toward vessels that violated Strait of Hormuz regulations about five hours earlier, adding that two warning missiles had also been launched from the nearby Karpan area toward the strategic waterway.
Iran had previously expressed anger at what it said was an “interventionist, irresponsible and provocative” statement by the US and six Gulf states that rejected its assertion that it could charge tolls on vessels transiting the strait.
“Safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz cannot be guaranteed under ambiguous arrangements, parallel routes or decision-making that does not take Iran’s role as a coastal state into account,” Iranian deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on X.
Bloomberg News said Oman, which lies on the opposite side of the strait from Iran, had told allies that ships going through Hormuz may have to pay. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report.
Iranian state TV said three foreign tankers attempting what it called an “unauthorised passage” of the strait were turned back after a warning from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. It gave no further details.
Before the renewed outbreak of violence, oil prices dropped by about 3 per cent on Friday, on course for steep weekly losses, in response to oil tankers exiting the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies typically pass.
Saudi Aramco resumed crude loadings at its Ras Tanura terminal in the Gulf, the world’s biggest oil port, after a nearly four-month halt, shipping data showed.
Fertiliser shipments through the strait have also picked up, helping to assuage concerns about a spike in global food prices.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio — wrapping up a tour of the Gulf to reassure regional allies about the interim pact — issued a joint statement with the Gulf Cooperation Council calling for “free, unconditional, and unrestricted navigation” in the strait without tolls or “attempts to assert control”.
Iran’s foreign ministry said the strait should be governed by Iran and Oman, while Ali Akbar Velayati, top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, warned the US’ Gulf allies that their survival depended on Iran’s tolerance.
While the exchange of attacks between Iran and the US has further strained the fragile peace deal struck last week, elsewhere, there were signs of progress, with Israel and Lebanon signing an agreement to end the fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Both sides framed the deal as an initial step that calls for Hezbollah to disarm and Israel to withdraw troops from Lebanon, but it was not clear how it would be enforced. Hezbollah said it would not cooperate.