Dubai: Iran launched new attacks on US allies in the Gulf on Saturday, responding to a seventh consecutive night of American strikes against Iranian military sites, including logistics facilities. The exchanges have intensified hostilities one week after a fragile ceasefire collapsed, Reuters reported.
Both sides also struck at commercial shipping. The US said it was enforcing a naval blockade, redirecting and disabling vessels, while Iran said it attacked ships that breached its navigation rules in the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic chokepoint that handles about one-fifth of global oil flows.
Oil prices jumped more than 4 percent on Friday to their highest level in over a month, increasing political pressure on US President Donald Trump ahead of November congressional elections.
Escalation Across land & Sea
US Central Command said its latest operations targeted surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage and maritime capabilities, employing “fighter aircraft, aerial drones, and warships in addition to other assets.”
The statement added, “More than 50,000 American service members are operating across the Middle East and remain vigilant, lethal, and ready.”
Iranian state media reported missile strikes that hit power stations and desalination pumps in the southern port city of Jask, citing a local official who said drinking water had been cut off in surrounding villages.
State television also reported explosions or strikes in several cities, including Sirik, Ahvaz, Yazd, Jask and Khorramabad, and said three people were killed and eight wounded after damage to two bridges and a road tunnel in Hormozgan province.
Maritime Confrontation Intensifies
The United States said it redirected four commercial vessels, disabled one and boarded another as part of its enforcement of a naval blockade.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards countered that they intercepted four vessels that violated its rules for transiting the Strait of Hormuz, using a combination of missiles and drones.
Iran’s media, quoting the Guards, reported two oil tankers exploded and caught fire after transiting a mined channel south of the strait. The US military called that account false.
Meanwhile, armed men seized a vessel off Yemen, raising mounting security threats at the Bab al-Mandeb strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, another major route for oil shipments.
Warnings & Wider Fallout
Iranian officials warned the confrontation could block regional exports. Iran’s state TV quoted the Revolutionary Guards as saying that until US “aggression” ends, it will not be possible to export chemical fertilizers or even a “single drop of oil and gas” from the region.
Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, cautioned against US escalation or any attempt to seize Iranian territory.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres voiced concern about the spiraling violence, particularly “attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and across the region,” his spokesperson said. As both sides test the boundaries of retaliation, the risk of a wider, sustained conflict appears to be rising.
