Iran Resumes Drone Strikes on US Bases in Bahrain as Gulf Shipping War Escalates

Six-drone attack on Bahrain marks return to active hostilities after two-month lull. Iran claims supertanker sinking in Hormuz, US insists shipping lanes are clear. Regional allies condemn but offer no military response.

Iran launched a six-drone strike on a US airbase in Bahrain early Sunday, the second attack since Friday, ending a two-month pause in direct strikes against American positions in the Gulf. Bahrain's air defenses intercepted and destroyed all six drones before they reached the Al-Rifaa helicopter base, and officials reported no damage or injuries. But the resumption of attacks forced the kingdom to sound missile warning sirens across the tiny Gulf state, rattling a civilian population that had begun to believe the worst was behind them.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed the strike targeted a radar facility at Al-Rifaa, calling it justified retaliation for US strikes on Iranian naval installations along the southern coast and on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran was "not waiting for anyone" and would continue responding to military aggression. The US has been conducting what President Trump described as "minor" low-level strikes on Iranian naval sites to degrade Iranian capability and escort commercial shipping through Hormuz. The IRGC also claimed the sinking of an oil supertanker carrying more than two million barrels of crude after it hit a mine in the Strait of Hormuz, with no independent verification yet available. Iran said two ships had struck its mines, resulting in "massive explosions and fire." Tehran has heavily restricted traffic through the strait since the war began, demanding vessels seek permission and travel designated pathways, and has fired on ships attempting to bypass Iranian detection. The US military had recently claimed it had cleared all mines from the main routes, and CENTCOM posted that more than 1.7 billion barrels of crude had been shipped through with US protection. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, and Egypt all issued nearly identical condemnations of the attack on Bahrain. Saudi Arabia called the strikes "a violation of international law and the principles of good neighborliness," while Qatar warned the attacks represent "a dangerous escalation that will complicate efforts to contain the tension." None of the statements included any commitment to military action. Bahrain, which hosts US Naval Forces Central Command and the Fifth Fleet headquarters at NSA Bahrain, praised its own defense forces' interception capability but acknowledged that the base had sustained major damage during earlier Iranian retaliatory strikes and may not be fully recovered. On a separate front, the Iran-backed Houthis are pressing the Saudi-backed Yemeni government around Aden, the interim capital. A Houthi missile strike on a checkpoint in Khor Omeira, Lahj province, killed five people and injured eight. Yemeni government forces say they have been forced to abandon their Bab el-Mandeb counter-offensive to redeploy for the defense of Aden, a significant tactical retreat that hands the Houthis control over a critical chokepoint. Donald Trump said in recent media interviews that he would attack Iran "only if necessary," claiming Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia had urged him to hold back from planned large-scale strikes. Trump said he had redirected JD Vance away from Iran negotiations — Vance had been seen by Tehran as the most trustworthy figure near Trump — and told him to focus on domestic issues instead. The Iranians had rejected Vance's request for a personal meeting to discuss peace terms. Trump expressed disappointment in the American public, saying higher diesel prices were "a small price to pay" for preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. The pattern is familiar and dangerous: tit-for-tat strikes escalate while diplomatic channels close. Vance's sidelining removes the one American interlocutor Iran was willing to engage, and the regional condemnations carry no military teeth. With the Houthis advancing on Aden and unverified reports of supertanker sinkings in Hormuz, the conflict is expanding across multiple fronts while the political bandwidth to manage it narrows.