Iran's Revolutionary Guards launched missile and drone strikes against US military facilities in Bahrain, Jordan, and Kuwait as the United States conducted a fourth consecutive day of airstrikes on Iranian coastal targets and reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports [5][6][8]. An Indian sailor was killed and eight others injured when Iranian cruise missiles struck two UAE-linked tankers in the Strait of Hormuz [11][16]; casualty figures varied across sources, with Der Spiegel reporting ten injuries [9] and the International Maritime Organization reporting two seafarers killed and 14 injured [31].

US Central Command stated that its forces employed precision munitions against Iranian coastal defense systems, missile and drone sites, and maritime capabilities to degrade Iran's ability to attack commercial shipping [8][22][33]. President Donald Trump warned that the campaign would expand to Iranian power plants and bridges unless Tehran negotiates, stating: "Next week it gets really bad for them because next week comes the power plants. Next week comes the bridges" [6][17][33]. An unnamed US official described the latest strikes as carried out "to eliminate emerging threats" [35]. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated the Treasury is "shutting down the financial infrastructure that allows the regime to continue its threats to U.S. national security and global shipping" [33].

Iran's military leadership and President Masoud Pezeshkian framed the strikes on US bases as legitimate sovereign self-defense against American aggression, with Pezeshkian vowing to defend "every inch" of Iran [14][15]. The IRGC announced it had struck the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain and a US airbase in Jordan, stating: "This base had been used to launch attacks against us, and the American criminals have now been made to pay for their actions" [19]. Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf declared: "The era of one-sided deals is OVER" [5]. An Iranian military command spokesperson warned that any collaboration by Gulf countries with the US would be considered "an act of war" [6][8].

The IRGC stated that the two supertankers struck in the Strait of Hormuz had been deceived by the US into using an unauthorized, mined route and had ignored repeated warnings from Iran's maritime security center [11][14][18]. IRGC spokesperson Brigadier General Hossein Mohebi said: "Los dos superpetroleros transgresores fueron enganados por EE UU para que utilizasen esa ruta y apagasen sus sistemas de navegacion" (The two offending supertankers were deceived by the US into using that route and turning off their navigation systems) [11]. CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper accused Iran of intentionally targeting civilians, stating that Iran had attacked seven commercial ships in the past week, resulting in nearly a dozen crew members killed, missing, or injured [6][15][17]. The UAE Ministry of Defence reported that Iranian cruise missiles struck two Emirati oil tankers in Omani territorial waters and said the UAE reserves its right to respond [16][32].

India's Foreign Ministry summoned Iran's deputy ambassador and lodged a strong protest, stating: "We strongly condemn these attacks and acts of violence targeting seafarers and disrupting free and safe navigation through international waterways like the Strait of Hormuz" [7][29]. The Forward Seamen's Union of India criticized delays in official updates on the missing Indian engineer and said Indian vessels continue to be targeted despite diplomatic assurances [42]. The International Transport Workers' Federation and the Joint Negotiating Group maintained the Strait of Hormuz as a Warlike Operations Area [50].

Trump initially proposed a 20 percent fee on all cargo transiting the Strait of Hormuz, declaring the US "THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT" [8][16][27]. He reversed the proposal, stating: "I do not believe anybody should charge a fee but at the same time, it's not fair that we're protecting this strait for the entire world," replacing the fee with investment deals with Gulf Arab states [13][29]. The International Maritime Organization rejected the legal basis for mandatory transit fees, citing the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea's guarantee of unimpeded transit through international straits [9][10][16]. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded: "20% is of course too much. We will be fair," and insisted Tehran is the guardian of the strait and will remain so [8][13][27].

Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi stated that the US decision to renew the naval blockade has "in a way, dismantled the Islamabad memorandum," the Pakistan-brokered framework for previous talks [6][7][33]. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the memorandum is "in crisis" and that Iran will not uphold its obligations when the other party fails to meet theirs, while confirming talks continue with mediators from Qatar, Pakistan, and Oman [8][30]. Iran's Foreign Ministry separately condemned US strikes as a "flagrant war crime" and a violation of the UN Charter [38].

The IRGC warned that continued US actions would mean regional oil and gas exports are halted entirely, stating that "not a single drop of oil and gas" will be exported as long as US aggression continues [31][33][34]. Oil prices rose to one-month highs, with commodity analysts warning that depleted strategic reserves leave markets vulnerable and prices could reach $100 per barrel [40]. Japan stated it has secured over 100 percent of crude oil imports for July and August [46], while Mexico increased fiscal stimulus on fuel taxes to shield domestic consumers [10]. Turkey's Hurriyet analyzed the crisis's potential impact on the country's current account deficit and inflation as a net energy importer [47].

Iranian state media and utility operators reported that US strikes damaged electricity and water facilities on Kish and Qeshm islands, with the Kish Water and Power Engineering Company warning of potential power outages [2][48]. Bahrain activated air raid sirens nationwide, urging citizens to remain calm and seek shelter [7][12][29]. Kuwait's army reported intercepting hostile drone attacks [7][33][34]. Jordan's military confirmed it intercepted four missiles from Iran [13][27], though one source reported three intercepted [15]. Saudi Arabia's cabinet expressed complete rejection of Iran's violations of the sovereignty of states in the region [41].

The conflict extended to Yemen, where Houthi forces fired missiles at Saudi Arabia's Abha airport after Saudi strikes on Sanaa International Airport [27][36]. Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree warned airlines against flying through Saudi airspace until the Sanaa blockade is lifted [36]. Houthi political bureau member Mohammed al-Bukhaiti threatened a "siege" on Saudi Arabia [37]. Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called the attack on Abha airport a violation of Saudi sovereignty [11]. Yemen's internationally recognized government stated it struck Sanaa airport to prevent an IRGC-linked aircraft from landing [27][37].

Independent analysts described the confrontation as calibrated signaling within a strategic stalemate. Chatham House associate fellow Bader Al-Saif stated: "Both sides want to end the impasse on their own terms, and they are increasingly finding it difficult to do so. Hence the return to and increase in the scale of attacks. That only prolongs what will eventually happen: a negotiated settlement" [8][30]. Pierre Razoux of the Foundation for Strategic Research described the situation as "On est dans une partie de poker menteur autour du detroit d'Ormuz" (We are in a game of liar's poker around the Strait of Hormuz) [21]. King's College London's Andreas Krieg commented that the conflict has returned to "a low-intensity conflict that will not produce any clear victory for anyone" [24].

China's Foreign Ministry expressed deep concern and called for restraint and respect for coastal states' rights [39]. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that US strikes violate the signed memorandum and close the door to a peaceful settlement [44]. UN Assistant Secretary-General Elizabeth Spehar told the Security Council that each new strike increases the risk of miscalculation [45]. US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused Trump of "dragging America deeper into a war in Iran with no authorization, no plan, and no exit strategy" [33]. The US military's first operational use of suicide unmanned surface vessels against Bandar Abbas was reported, with defense experts noting the conflict is accelerating the fielding of new weapons technology [23].

Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to a two-month low, with vessels switching off tracking transponders [30]. The Joint Maritime Information Center stated that an expanded southern route near Oman remains available for two-way traffic [5][16]. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency issued warnings for airlines to avoid airspace over Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, and the Gulf of Oman [13][14].