The situation in the Middle East has escalated to a critical point after the Islamic Republic launched a large-scale regional counteroffensive.
Tehran's actions followed a seventh consecutive night of intensive US airstrikes targeting military and civilian infrastructure in southern Iran. By 7:00 a.m., world agencies were reporting a massive activation of air defense systems in several Arab countries, while shipping in the Persian Gulf was completely paralyzed.
The Seventh Night of American Strikes: Infrastructure Damaged and Casualties
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) officially confirmed the completion of the seventh consecutive wave of air strikes against targets on Iranian territory, reports CNN . The operation involved fighter jets, drones and warships. According to Washington, the attacks were exclusively aimed at military logistics facilities, underground weapons depots, air defense systems and coastal radar stations around the strategic city of Bandar Abbas and Qeshm Island.
However, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported serious damage to civilian infrastructure, including the Iranshahr airport and a railway station. Local authorities in the southern province of Hormozgan said at least three civilians were killed and eight others wounded in the latest strikes, BBC reported. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei described Washington's actions as a "clear war crime."
Tehran's Retaliatory Strike: Missile and Drone Strikes Across the Region
In the hours before sunrise, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched its decentralized retaliation plan, attacking US military assets and allied countries in the region:
- Bahrain: The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) said it used ballistic missiles and drones to strike a US drone base and the country's main artificial intelligence center, home to the US Fifth Fleet. Air raid sirens were sounded in Bahrain, the report said.
- Kuwait: Iranian kamikaze drones attacked US military camps, while critical infrastructure was hit – power plant and water desalination plant, which forced local authorities to call for urgent consumption restrictions, BNR summarizes.
- Jordan and Qatar: The Jordanian Air Force reported the successful interception of at least 10 Iranian missiles that passed through its airspace. Qatar also announced the activation of its air defenses to neutralize aerial threats, informed Al Jazeera.
Complete blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and economic shock
At 7:00 a.m. Bulgarian time, Iran officially declared the Strait of Hormuz to be “completely closed and extremely dangerous“. The Revolutionary Guards said they had seized four merchant ships that tried to pass without permission. Meanwhile, two oil tankers burst into flames in the southern part of the strait after striking newly laid underwater mines. CENTCOM was quick to deny the claims of mine explosions, describing them as “hybrid disinformation”, but shipping through the world's most important oil artery has been completely halted, the French newspaper noted. Le Monde.
World markets reacted instantly to the news - the price of international benchmark crude oil “Brent“ jumped by over 11% for the week, crossing the $85 mark per barrel, which increases fears of a global energy crisis, warns the financial media CNBC.
Despite threats from US President Donald Trump that "next week things are going to get really bad for Tehran" if the country does not return to the negotiating table, Iran's top military adviser Mohsen Rezaei warned that if the attacks continue for another 48 hours, the Islamic Republic will move to "full-scale offensive operations" in which no political border in the Middle East will be safe. Mediation efforts by China and Pakistan to restore peace that collapsed last month have so far failed to yield results.