The oil tanker ‘Al-Riqqa’ (L) and ‘Al-Yarmouk’ oil tankers sail in the waters of the Arabian Gulf, off the coast of Kuwait City on June 27, 2026. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT / AFP via Getty Images) /
Yasser Al-zayyat | Afp | Getty Images
President Donald Trump again threatened Iran on Sunday with annihilation following US strikes on Iranian military targets in retaliation for Tehran’s recent strikes on shipping in the vital Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s neighbors, Kuwait and Bahrain, reported missiles being fired and incoming drones overnight.
“United States aircraft recently attacked Iranian missile and drone storage sites, as well as coastal radar sites, in violation of the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN!,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The US military has struck a number of targets in Iran after a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz was reportedly hit by a projectile on Saturday.
The attack was the latest escalation of tensions between the two countries in recent days, following a temporary agreement aimed at ending hostilities in the region.
US Central Command said early Sunday that warplanes struck 10 Iranian military sites near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for a drone strike on the Panamanian-flagged M/T Kiku. The ship was passing through the road carrying more than 2 million barrels of crude oil, CentCom said on Saturday.
“There may come a time when we will no longer be able to reason, and we will be forced to militarily finish the job we have successfully started. When that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will cease to exist!,” Trump wrote.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to send Iran back to the “stone age”.
In an April Truth Social post, Trump threatened that “the entire civilization will die tonight” and raised the specter of nuclear war. “On Iran, the clock is ticking, and they better go, FAST, or there won’t be anything left for them,” Trump said in a post in May.
Kuwait and Bahrain are under attack
Iran said it attacked US forces in Kuwait and Bahrain earlier Sunday following US strikes on its coastal bases.
Kuwait’s military said its air defenses were “facing hostile missile and drone attacks”.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain condemned “the renewed aggression of Iran in its territory, which has also targeted a number of missiles and drones, in a dangerous manner”.
“What Tehran is doing is not a passing act, or an isolated incident, but a deliberate and systematic pattern of repeated attacks,” Bahrain’s statement said.
Despite the spate of attacks, the Central Command said the movement of commercial vessels through the vital waterway continues.
Oil prices extended their slide on Friday as more tankers left the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns.
International Brent crude futures for August were down 4.34% at $71.99 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate futures for August fell 3.74% to end at $69.23 a barrel. The last time WTI futures closed below $70 was in Feb. 27 – the day before the start of the Iran war.
CentCom said the US strike targeted “Iran’s military surveillance infrastructure, communications systems, air defense facilities, drone storage facilities, and mine working capabilities”.
Growth between conversations
The new attack comes as the US and Iran were supposed to agree to a 60-day ceasefire as they hold talks to end their war. But both accused the other of breaking their end of the deal.
The US military attacked Iran on Friday after Trump accused the Islamic Republic of “stupidly violating” a ceasefire by launching drone attacks on ships.
Iran on Thursday rammed the Singapore-flagged cargo ship Ever Lovely off the coast of Oman, the Central Command said in a post on X. The ship continued on its way through the challenge, which is a major way of transporting oil.
The renewed attack comes more than a week after Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at forging a permanent peace agreement to end hostilities between their two nations.
– CNBC’s Sarah Min, Terri Cullen and Dan Mangan contributed to this report
