Iran expands attacks on Gulf states after intense US strikes
Iran struck Kuwait and other Gulf states on Sunday evening, while Washington and Tehran dispute control of the Strait of Hormuz. The US responded with strikes on about 140 targets.
Fresh attacks hit Iran and Kuwait on Sunday evening as tensions between Tehran and Washington over the Strait of Hormuz escalated. Iranian state media reported at least 10 'enemy projectiles' struck Qeshm Island, located in the strait, and Farur Island, killing a telecommunications worker and wounding two others. Kuwait said three of its northern border posts were damaged and an offshore drilling platform was targeted by a hostile drone, injuring one person.
The attacks came hours after the third exchange of fire this week between Iran and the US, with control of the Strait of Hormuz again at the center. Before the war began on February 28 with surprise US-Israeli strikes on Iran, free passage through the strait was normal, but Tehran now insists it will control it, while Washington refuses to accept that.
Earlier Sunday, Iran's Revolutionary Guards announced the strait would be closed until further notice and until the end of American intervention in the region, according to state news agency IRNA. The US Central Command countered on X that the strait is open to all vessels lawfully transiting and that Iran does not control it.
The US military responded with strikes on about 140 targets, and Iranian media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Jask, Qeshm, and Khuzestan province, with one soldier killed in Jask. President Donald Trump told CNN, 'We hit them very hard last night,' maintaining the sides were close to a deal on Saturday until Iran hit a ship with a drone.
Iran's response was swift, with sirens and explosions reported in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain. Kuwait said it was working to intercept an attack, while Jordan reported three Iranian missiles fell inside the kingdom. Iran's Guards said they also struck Oman, a rare target. Muscat summoned the Iranian ambassador and handed a formal protest.
The attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the strait left one Indian sailor missing, New Delhi said. Oman reported rescuing 23 crew members from a commercial ship. Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has vowed revenge for his father's killing on the first day of the war. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the attacks to stop, and Pakistan, a mediator, urged de-escalation.
