Tensions between the United States and Iran escalated sharply on Thursday as both sides carried out fresh strikes in their most serious confrontation since the April ceasefire, deepening concerns over regional stability and the future of peace efforts around the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz.
The latest flare up comes nearly three months into the conflict, with American forces launching another strike on Iranian targets for the second time in a week. Washington said the operation was carried out in self defence after detecting what it described as hostile activity from Iranian forces.
According to two US military officials quoted by the Associated Press, American forces intercepted four Iranian drones and struck a launch site from where a fifth drone was allegedly preparing to take off. The officials, who spoke anonymously, claimed the drones posed a threat to maritime security near the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial trade corridor at the centre of the ongoing conflict.
A separate US official told Reuters that the site targeted by American forces was an Iranian ground control station located in Bandar Abbas.
“These actions were measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire,” Reuters quoted the official as saying.
Iran, however, said it responded to the American action by targeting a US military facility in the region allegedly linked to the earlier strike. Tehran did not identify the exact base it attacked.
In a statement, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said, “Following the pre dawn aggression today by the invading American army against a point on the outskirts of Bandar Abbas Airport using aerial projectiles, the American airbase, as the origin of the aggression, was targeted at 4:50 a.m.”
The IRGC also warned that any future attacks would trigger a “more decisive” response.
Kuwait on alert after missile and drone threat
The situation widened further hours later when air raid sirens sounded across Kuwait amid reports of incoming missile and drone threats.
Kuwait’s armed forces confirmed that air defence systems were actively intercepting hostile aerial targets. Authorities issued a public advisory asking residents to remain calm if they heard explosions, explaining that the sounds were linked to interception operations.
“We call on everyone to adhere to the security and safety instructions issued by the competent authorities,” the military said.
US sanctions Iranian authority overseeing Hormuz
Late Wednesday, the United States also imposed sanctions on Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the body established by Tehran to oversee shipping movement through the Strait of Hormuz.
The authority was added to the US Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals list shortly after the latest American strikes on Iranian targets.
