Trump threatens Iran with obliteration as US strikes 10 sites and Tehran retaliates by hitting bases in Kuwait and Bahrain

A truce broken

Both sides blame the other for breaching the ceasefire agreed on 17 June. CENTCOM said that after earlier American strikes in retaliation for Iran’s attack on the freighter Ever Lovely, Tehran “had the opportunity to honour the ceasefire agreement but chose not to”. Iran responded by hitting the Panama-flagged tanker Kiku with a kamikaze drone near the Strait of Hormuz, a vessel carrying more than two million barrels of crude oil. The US then struck again on 10 sites late Saturday night.

Iran had the opportunity to honour the ceasefire agreement, but chose not to.

US Saturday night strikes

American fighter jets targeted military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, anti-aircraft defence facilities, drone depots and mine-laying capabilities, according to CENTCOM. Explosions were reported in the Sirik area of southern Iran, where state broadcaster IRIB said a telecommunications tower was hit, citing an Iranian military official. Missiles also struck a village on Qeshm island but there were no immediate reports of casualties.

Iran hits US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain

In the early hours of Sunday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard announced it had launched missiles and drones at US military installations in Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation for the latest American strikes. A statement carried by Press TV said the ceasefire violation “contravenes Article 1 of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and will lead to the complete cessation of all diplomatic processes”. The Guard claimed it had “destroyed eight significant facilities of the US armed forces at the Ali Al Salem base in Kuwait and the 5th Fleet base at Salman port in Bahrain”.

Every hostile attack, regardless of pretext, even against insignificant targets, will receive a relentless response.

Kuwait’s armed forces confirmed the attacks, according to the report.

Trump’s threat of military end

On his Truth Social platform, President Donald Trump wrote that American aircraft had just struck Iranian missile and drone warehouses and coastal radar sites for “once again violating the ceasefire agreement”. He added that “a time may come when we are forced to militarily complete the work we began with great success” and warned that “if that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist.”

A time may come when we are forced to militarily complete the work we began with great success. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist.

Escalation timeline

The latest exchanges mark a second consecutive night of open hostilities between the two countries, with no sign of a diplomatic off-ramp.