Unclaimed airstrikes hit Iran after US ends attacks, deepening Gulf mystery

Dubai,UPDATED: Jul 10, 2026 19:36 IST

A series of unclaimed airstrikes hit Iran on Thursday after the US said it had completed its latest round of attacks, raising fresh questions over who else may be targeting the Islamic Republic. The strikes came as Iran prepared to bury the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and hit areas in southern Iran as well as other parts of the country.

Iran's leadership has not directly blamed any country for the attacks, though an Iranian lawmaker warned the United Arab Emirates over alleged support to the US in its campaign against Tehran. The developments come at a sensitive time for Gulf Arab states and the US, which have insisted that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to shipping, even as Iran says the waterway should be under its sole control and that vessels should pay fees to Tehran.

The US military's Central Command said at about 6.30 am local time on Thursday that it had finished a round of strikes in which about 90 targets were hit. Soon after that, Iranian news outlets and state media reported airstrikes and explosions in Bushehr and Sistan and Baluchestan provinces, the cities of Ahvaz and Chabahar, and other areas. A US defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss operational details, said there had been no new US strikes after the last round ended on Thursday morning.

Iran responded by launching a wider volley of attacks across the Middle East, targeting Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar. Missile alert sirens sounded in all four countries, sending people to shelters. One person was reportedly hurt in Kuwait as air defence systems tried to intercept the incoming fire. UAE leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan then travelled to Kuwait for a meeting with the country's ruling emir. Gulf Arab countries also held calls with Qatar's foreign minister, who has been involved along with Pakistan in mediating talks between Iran and the US over the interim deal now in place to stop a return to open warfare.

There were also unclaimed airstrikes during the Iran war, which began on February 28. Officials later said Saudi Arabia and the UAE had carried out strikes on Iran after Tehran hit energy sites in their countries. Another such strike by a Gulf country could be aimed at deterring Iran from targeting them again. Israel, which took part in the war, has not claimed any recent attacks on Iran and has not struck the country since June. In most cases, Israel quickly claims responsibility for its attacks on Iran. Israel's government said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to US President Donald Trump on Thursday night, with Trump updating him "on American moves in the Gulf". Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz also said the military "is on alert and ready to renew the campaign, to reestablish aerial superiority, and to carry out a blue-white (Israeli) strike in Iran to remove threats, even for a third time". He added: "If we will have to return, we will return with even greater force."

On Friday, Iranian state media quoted Esmail Kousari, a member of parliament's national security committee and a former Revolutionary Guard commander, as saying the UAE would "pay the price for its cooperation with the United States". He accused the Emirates of playing a "behind-the-scenes" role in the recent US attacks. Iran has repeatedly accused Gulf Arab states of supporting the US war effort, which they denied during the war. The US has maintained a broad network of military bases across Gulf Arab states since the 1991 Gulf War, including in Bahrain, home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet headquarters.

The Strait of Hormuz remains central to the crisis. Before the war, about a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas passed through the waterway, and Iran's control of the strait during the conflict triggered a global energy crisis, though oil prices have since fallen sharply from wartime highs of USD 120 a barrel. Iran says it should be the sole controller of the strait, but the US is still urging ships to use a southern route through Oman's territorial waters. On Friday, the Joint Maritime Information Centre, a multinational body overseen by the US Navy, again advised vessels to take that route. A similar advisory had triggered an Iranian attack on Tuesday in which three vessels were hit. "Notwithstanding recent unprovoked attacks on merchant vessels, mariners are reminded that the southern route of the (strait) has been expanded and remains available for all traffic," the centre said. Overall, the unclaimed strikes, Iran's threats, and renewed warnings over shipping have kept tensions high even after the latest US strikes ended and an interim deal came into place.

With PTI Inputs

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