Iran has attacked American bases in Bahrain and Kuwait, according to the Revolutionary Guards Corp, as well as a radar systems in Oman and fuel and ammunition stores in Jordan.
Jordan confirmed that it had destroyed missiles from Iran and Kuwait’s military said it was intercepting “hostile aerial targets.”
Bahrain’s military, meanwhile, accused Iran of attacking civilians.
“Iran continues its systematic hostile approach through its heinous attacks with missiles and drones that target civilians in the Kingdom of Bahrain,” the general command of Bahrain’s military said, continuing that air defences “intercepted and destroyed a number of Iranian aerial attacks” this morning.
The attacks are retaliation for overnight US strikes on targets across Iran, including air-defence systems, radar, missile and drone facilities, and small boats used on the Strait of Hormuz.
“The strait of Hormuz is a vital maritime corridor for global trade,” the US military’s Central Command said.
“Iran does not control it.”
This morning, oil prices opened 3% higher.
Brent crude futures were up $2.67 (3.51%) to $78.68, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up $2.48 (3.47%) to $73.89 a barrel.
Traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz, which under normal conditions handles 20% of global oil and natural gas shipments, fell to a five-week low as the ceasefire between the US and Iran broke down last week.
Iran repeatedly attacked shipping in the Strait, leading President Trump to declare the ceasefire was over.
The future of the Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran now looks uncertain. The Memorandum, signed last month, aimed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and bring the war to a permanent end after 60 days of negotiations.
The global oil supply increased by 4.1 million barrels a day as a result of the signing, but was still 9.4 million barrels a day below pre-war levels.
Iran has said it will not honor the Memorandum of Understanding unless the US does too.
“Each time that the other party has failed to meet its obligations, we did not uphold ours… We will continue to act in this manner,” Iran’s foreign-ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said.
“No one can accuse the Islamic Republic of Iran of violating its promises. In all cases, our obligations and those of the other party are clear, and it can be proven in a documented manner that the other party has violated various parts of this memorandum of understanding under various pretexts.”
