US airstrikes hit Iran again as Tehran targets Bahrain and Kuwait

Dubai,UPDATED: Jul 20, 2026 13:26 IST

The United States carried out a fresh round of airstrikes on Iran early Monday, hours after announcing the death of another American service member. Iran responded by launching attacks targeting Bahrain, home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet, and Kuwait, as the conflict moved closer to a wider war.

The latest strikes came as last month's interim deal aimed at permanently ending the fighting continued to fall apart and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained largely stalled. Both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure used by millions, while Brent crude rose above USD 90 a barrel on Monday, adding to the global energy crisis triggered by the conflict.

The US military said the American service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the "controlled detonation" of a downed Iranian drone. US President Donald Trump said, "We hit them very hard again tonight," and added, "And we did that in honor of the" soldiers killed.

The US military's Central Command said it had now carried out strikes for a ninth straight night. It said the latest targets included "Iranian military command centres, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and communications networks."

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency said the American strikes killed at least one person around Tabriz in northwestern Iran, a city believed to house underground missile bases operated by the Revolutionary Guard. IRNA also reported that strikes likely hit Bandar Imam Khomeini in Khuzestan province, Sirik and Jask in Hormozgan province, and Konarak and Chahbahar in Sistan and Baluchistan province.

As the strikes began, a ship caught fire early Monday in the Strait of Hormuz near Oman's coastline, according to the British military. The cause of the fire was not immediately clear. The route off Oman has been encouraged by the US military for ships seeking to avoid Iran's control, and the Guard later claimed it was targeting tankers in the strait.

Iran has also stepped up attacks on US-allied countries in the region. Bahrain sounded missile alert sirens on Monday morning, while Kuwait said its air defences were firing at an incoming Iranian barrage.

Trump has threatened to target Iran's power stations and bridges to pressure Tehran to loosen its hold on the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of traded global oil supplies passed before the war. Recent attacks suggest the US military is moving ahead with that plan. In the past week, the US also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to stop crude oil shipments, and the military said on Saturday that it had redirected six ships and disabled one since then.

The conflict has also moved beyond the halfway mark of the 60 days set under the interim deal to negotiate a permanent end to the war and address other issues, including Iran's nuclear programme. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington remained open to talks, but added that "it has to be real." He said, "We're going to continue to respond. If the door opens to diplomacy - if the guys that want to do something productive for Iran win and take control of that system, or take control of the negotiations - that'll be a very positive development. That's not where we are tonight, unfortunately."

Former Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who helped elect President Masoud Pezeshkian, wrote in an essay published on Monday by Foreign Policy that "the deal could never survive such dissonance" over the Strait of Hormuz. He added, "As the current conflict makes clear, Washington cannot eliminate the Iranian government. Only diplomacy, a new peace agreement, and a new security framework produced by regional states and for regional states will allow the United States to turn its attention elsewhere." However, he also warned that "if Iran repeatedly threatens maritime traffic, it could turn much of the world against it."

Iranian authorities said on Sunday that at least 50 people had been killed and 517 wounded in the latest rounds of US strikes. Since the war began on February 28, 17 US service members have been killed, as both sides continue to exchange attacks and the prospects of diplomacy remain uncertain.

With PTI Inputs

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