For the second day running, the United States and Iran are pounding each other across the Middle East, shredding what little remained of their April ceasefire.
US Central Command says American forces unleashed “self-defence strikes” on Iranian military, radar, and surveillance sites in the country’s south.
Hours earlier, President Donald Trump promised Iran would be hit “hard,” blasting Tehran for dragging out peace talks.
Iran fired back almost immediately. Bases in Bahrain and Kuwait came under attack again, while the Revolutionary Guard boasted it had launched 12 ballistic missiles at a US command centre in Jordan.
State media claimed fighter jets and facilities were destroyed, though none of that has been independently verified.
The fallout was felt on the ground. In Bahrain, shrapnel from intercepted drones damaged homes and cars, injuring an 11‑year‑old girl. Kuwait shut its airspace for several hours after intercepting “hostile aerial targets.”
Explosions also rattled Tehran and the southern port city of Bandar Abbas. Iranian outlets reported the Strait of Hormuz was “completely closed” and that two oil tankers were hit.
Centcom flatly denied that, saying commercial ships were still moving through the channel. Oil markets didn’t wait for confirmation — Brent crude spiked to $95 a barrel.
Trump doubled down online: “We hit them hard yesterday, and we’re going to hit them hard again today.” Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth warned bombs would keep falling until Iran came to the table.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shot back that his country would “stand firm against any pressure or threat.”
The ceasefire agreed in April was supposed to last two weeks. Instead, it’s been a slow burn of tit‑for‑tat strikes, capped this week by the downing of a US helicopter and Iran’s barrage on American bases.
UN Secretary General António Guterres summed up the mood: the ceasefire is “more like a lesser fire.” His plea was blunt: “No more attacks. No more excuses.”