The United States struck northern Iran for the first time in this round of hostilities and boarded a commercial vessel as part of its naval blockade, while Iran fired missiles and drones at US military installations in Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan in a single wave of retaliation [1][4][6]. The sixth consecutive night of strikes reached targets beyond Iran's southern coast, and CENTCOM reported redirecting three commercial vessels, disabling a Curaçao-flagged oil tanker with Hellfire missiles, and boarding another vessel to ensure compliance with the blockade [1][4][8][26].
US Central Command stated the strikes target Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, including command centers, air defense sites, missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance installations [1][3][7]. Three US officials told Reuters the strikes could serve as shaping operations, giving President Donald Trump more options by targeting capabilities the US would want destroyed before taking bigger steps [5]. The Wall Street Journal reported Trump is considering expanded options including ground troops and bombing the Pickaxe Mountain nuclear facility [8].
Trump stated Iran wants to settle, saying "They don't like what we're doing, and they do want to settle. We'll find out whether or not we settle with them, or we just finish it off" [1][10]. He thanked Iran for releasing American citizen Dena Karari as a gesture of goodwill, though Iran's judiciary denied any prisoner release had occurred [4][24][25]. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump remains open to diplomacy but will not allow Iran to fire on ships without consequences, framing the strikes as a response to Iran's violation of the Islamabad memorandum [4][6][22]. Trump threatened to destroy all power plants and bridges next week unless Iran resumes negotiations [8][13][28].
Iranian parliament speaker and lead negotiator Mohammad Ghalibaf declared Iran is in an "essential and existential war with America" and stated Tehran has no reason to abide by any agreement that does not benefit the country [1][4][10][13]. Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari declared the Strait of Hormuz Iran's uncompromising red line [10][11], and Iranian Army spokesperson Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia said the only way to reopen it is for the US to comply with the Islamabad memorandum and allow Iranian regulations to prevail [7][31]. Senior advisor Ali Akbar Velayati asserted the strait belongs to Iran and no world power can take it from Iran's sovereignty [11]. The IRGC threatened that oil and gas exports from the region will be "either for everyone or for no one" [1]. Iranian deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi announced the Islamabad Memorandum is no longer valid due to US military operations [46].
The IRGC and Iranian army announced named operations against US military assets in Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan, describing the strikes as retaliation for US aggression rather than unprovoked attacks on host states [1][12][31]. Iranian forces reported attacking radar systems, Patriot air defense batteries, fuel depots, and communications facilities at Ali al Salem base in Kuwait, Sheikh Isa base in Bahrain, and Al Azraq air base in Jordan [7][31]. Akraminia stated US airstrikes cannot open the strait because Iran can strike it from anywhere on its territory [5][32].
Kuwait's Defense Ministry reported intercepting 32 Iranian drones [6][26], though a Kuwaiti Defense Ministry spokesman separately cited four cruise missiles and 21 drones intercepted [42], and described the attacks as "atrocious Iranian aggression," with debris landing in civilian neighborhoods [6][12]. Jordan intercepted eight Iranian missiles targeting its territory [1][12]. Bahraini authorities confirmed alarms were activated and called on the population to move to safe places [12]. Iran stated its attacks target only US military bases and are not directed against Arab neighbor states [18].
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei accused the US of a "barbaric attack" near a children's cancer hospital in Ahvaz, forcing the evacuation of 211 patients undergoing chemotherapy [10][29]. Amin Goodarzi, director of public relations at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, said some patients had to return because treatment cannot be interrupted [5][32]. Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani reported at least 30 civilians killed in recent US strikes [13][28]. UN human rights chief Volker Türk stated that deliberately attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure is a war crime [4]. Iranian state media reported US strikes hit bridges, a train station, and an airport in southern Iran [4][25], and a US official told the Wall Street Journal the bridges were struck to cut off supply lines to Bandar Abbas [20].
IEA head Fatih Birol warned that oil security remains a critical issue and the world should be concerned if the situation does not improve in the next few weeks [6][26]. Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser warned of catastrophic consequences for global oil markets if the strait closure continues [41]. Brent crude closed at a one-month high of $84.95 [7][13].
Shipping companies are refusing to use a US military-guided transit scheme through the strait, citing crew safety concerns [43]. India's directorate general of shipping ordered shipowners not to deploy Indian crew members on vessels passing through the strait [29]. Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped from over 120 vessels per day to around a dozen, with one report putting the figure as low as nine [10][18].
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed officials to prepare a contingency plan for fuel shortages [27]. South Korea's government moved to cut Middle East oil dependency below 50 percent [39]. Russian market analysts noted Russia is losing extra export revenue as the blockade eases and Urals crude discounts widen [40].
Middle East Institute senior fellow Alex Vatanka said the warring sides are back to square one, reaching the limits of limited war [5][32]. Johns Hopkins professor Vali Nasr said the conflict is a battle for leverage, with the US unable to force Iran to abandon its terms as long as Iran holds the strait [19]. Chatham House director Sanam Vakil said both sides are escalating to gain leverage before returning to negotiations [19]. Turkish analysts at the Center for Iranian Studies assessed that Trump's pressure on Iran is part of a broader design to close secondary fronts in Syria and Lebanon while isolating Tehran [30]. Analysts at King's College London and Georgetown University concluded a US ground invasion of Iran's Gulf islands would be militarily costly and politically unsustainable [9][11].
UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed deep concern and called on all parties to take immediate steps toward de-escalation [8]. Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi called on the US and Iran to resume negotiations under the Islamabad memorandum [10][29]. Saudi deputy minister Rayed Krimly reiterated the kingdom's support for de-escalation [33].
Vice President JD Vance alleged a covert, well-funded campaign linked to the Israeli government is trying to derail US-Iran negotiations [11][44]. Israel's defense minister Yisrael Katz told his US counterpart Israel will not withdraw from security zones it occupies in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza [11]. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called Trump's campaign "maximum confusion, maximum chaos, maximum cost," and constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein stated the War Powers Resolution prohibits presidential wars like Iran [37]. University of Chicago professor Robert Pape assessed Iran could cross the nuclear threshold within about a year [6][26].
Conflict and environment monitors documented over 300 environmentally damaging incidents in the first ten days of the war, including toxic clouds from bombed refineries and oil slicks in the Gulf [35][47]. Iraq's prime minister ordered inquiries into intercepted weapons shipments and pledged to disarm non-state armed groups [10][29], while Lebanon's foreign minister declared a decision to end Hezbollah's military presence as a matter of sovereign state prerogative [29]. A rights advocate documented mass arrests and statelessness imposed on dozens of children in Bahrain's crackdown on alleged Iranian agents, arguing the campaign disproportionately targets the Shia community [16]. Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi warned that all Saudi oil facilities are targets for Houthi missiles and drones if Saudi Arabia gets involved in aggression against Yemen [6][26].
Iranian World Cup delegation members described repeated airport detentions applied uniquely to Iran's team, with player Alireza Jahanbakhsh stating "To be honest, we don't ask for much. We just ask for the same procedure for all the other 47 teams" [17]. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin told reporters he was "so happy" his department had pulled the Iranian team's visas [17].
A Tehran resident named Mahlegha said: "Living with this fear that war could start again is very exhausting. You cannot live like this ... Personally, I want diplomacy to prevail" [5][32]. Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi stated that "whenever the parties exhaust the logic of escalation, the formula for peace is there" [10].