US bombs 140 Iranian military sites after IRGC attacks ship and closes Strait of Hormuz; Tehran retaliates against Gulf states

Incident in the Strait

Tensions flared overnight Saturday when the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy fired warning shots at the Cypriot-flagged container vessel MV GFS Galaxy, which was navigating the Strait of Hormuz. According to the IRGC, the ship was using an unauthorized route. The vessel, 9 nautical miles east of Oman's Musandam Peninsula, suffered significant engine room damage and a fire, leaving one civilian crew member missing. The crew abandoned ship, as reported by the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre. Shortly after, Iran announced it would close the strait "until further order" and threatened to attack US bases in the Gulf if Washington responded militarily.

The Strait of Hormuz will be closed until further order... no ship will be allowed to traverse it.

American airstrikes

In immediate retaliation, US Central Command launched its third round of airstrikes against Iran this week, hitting approximately 140 military sites across the country. Over the three nights of operations, CENTCOM said it struck more than 300 targets, including missile and drone bases, naval assets, ammunition depots, communication networks and coastal surveillance posts. The strikes came after three commercial oil tankers were attacked in the Gulf earlier in the week, prompting an initial exchange of fire. CENTCOM stated that Iran had been given another opportunity to respect the memorandum of understanding after previous infractions, but "failed again."

Iran was given another opportunity to demonstrate compliance with the Memorandum of Understanding after being held accountable for previous attacks on commercial ships, but failed again.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth shared his own blunt assessment.

Iran made a bad choice. Now they pay.

Iranian retaliation across the region

Hours later, the IRGC announced "retaliatory strikes" on what it described as US-associated facilities. Iran claimed to have destroyed the command and control centre and MQ-9 drone hangars at Prince Hassan Air Base, a US facility in Jordan, using multiple ballistic missiles. It also claimed a separate ballistic missile attack on Al Udeid Air Base, a major US installation in Qatar, destroying a fighter jet maintenance and repair facility. Sirens sounded in Bahrain, and the Kuwaiti military said its air defence systems were intercepting hostile aerial targets. Authorities in Qatar issued alerts urging residents to take shelter; an AFP journalist in Doha witnessed interceptions south of the city.

In Iran itself, explosions were reported in several provinces, including near the Bushehr nuclear facility, and in Jask, Sirik, Bandar Abbas, and other southern coastal towns, as US airstrikes widened their scope. The IRGC warned that any further US military action would be met with a "severe" response.

Global oil chokepoint at risk

The Strait of Hormuz handles roughly a fifth of the world's hydrocarbon trade. Since early May, US forces had facilitated the safe transit of more than 800 commercial vessels and 400 million barrels of crude through the waterway. The IRGC's closure directive raises immediate fears for the global oil supply. CENTCOM insisted that commercial shipping was continuing, but the rapid escalation threatens a corridor vital to the world economy.