Iran Widens Attacks on US Bases Across Gulf as Hormuz Tensions Lift Oil

Iranian and US forces exchanged heavy missile and drone attacks over the weekend and into Monday, with Tehran striking American military installations across multiple Gulf states and keeping the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed — driving oil prices sharply higher and deepening doubts about any near-term diplomatic resolution to the war.

Iran Hits US Facilities in Four Countries

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Monday it had targeted US military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, destroyed radar systems in Oman, and struck fuel tanks and ammunition depots at Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan. Bahrain’s air defense systems intercepted and destroyed several incoming Iranian missiles and drones early Monday.

On Sunday, the US military said it struck Iranian air defense systems, coastal radar sites, missile and drone launch capabilities, and small boats using aircraft, naval vessels, and drones. Explosions were heard Monday morning in the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz and on nearby Qeshm Island, according to semi-official Iranian media, though Reuters could not independently verify the report. Iran’s state media reported one person killed and seven wounded in an early-morning US strike Monday.

The pace and geographic reach of the exchanges mark a sharp escalation from the previous week and cast serious doubt over the interim US-Iranian ceasefire agreement signed last month, which was designed to reopen the strait and create a 60-day window for further negotiations.

“We’re beating them up,” Trump told Reuters in a brief phone interview Sunday.

Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, struck an equally combative tone. “The era of one-sided deals is OVER. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking,” he posted on X.

Hormuz Traffic Collapses, Oil Rises

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Monday the only path to restoring regular shipping through the strait was an end to US military operations in the waterway, warning that “continued interference could lead to greater incidents in the global oil and gas sector.” Iran declared the strait closed Saturday after what it described as an unauthorized ship transit, and said Sunday that passage would remain suspended until “stability and calm” were restored.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Tehran is pursuing a joint mechanism with Oman to manage strait traffic, though spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei acknowledged that US pressure on Oman has complicated those discussions.

Ship-tracking data illustrated the stakes. MarineTraffic reported that vessel activity through the Strait of Hormuz declined approximately 52% over July 10 to 12 compared to the prior week. The US Navy-led Joint Maritime Information Center maintained that a southern route near the Omani coastline remained open for two-way traffic despite what it called Iran’s “aggression, harassment, threats, and arbitrary declarations.” US officials said approximately 20 vessels had been escorted through the strait in the previous 24 hours. The US military maintained that “Iran does not control the strait. Traffic is flowing.”

Brent crude rose more than 2% Monday on fears of prolonged disruption to the world’s most important energy shipping corridor, though prices remained below the peaks reached at the height of the earlier conflict. Iran attacks US bases Gulf tensions have once again become a major driver of global energy markets, with higher gasoline costs creating political sensitivity for Trump ahead of November’s congressional elections.

Scope of Conflict Expands

The Revolutionary Guards said over the weekend they also destroyed a control center and drone hangars at a US ally base in Jordan, targeted a US radar site and rocket launcher systems in Kuwait, attacked US aircraft carrier support platforms in Oman, and destroyed a jet maintenance center in Qatar.

US Central Command said its forces struck hundreds of Iranian military targets last week alone “to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels freely transiting the strait.”

Trump has said he considers the June ceasefire effectively over, while leaving the theoretical possibility of further negotiations open. Thousands of people have been killed since the war began with US and Israeli strikes on February 28, predominantly in Iran and Lebanon. Iran has not released a cumulative death toll from the latest round of strikes, but state media reports on individual incidents suggest approximately 20 people have been killed in renewed US strikes over the past week.