USA and Iran attack each other again - air alert in two Gulf states

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• Despite a ceasefire, the USA and Iran have once again attacked each other in the Gulf region, with missiles and drones being intercepted and military targets attacked.
• Both sides justify their actions as self-defense, while claims of damage and success are not independently verifiable.
• At the same time, the situation remains tense as strategically important regions such as the Strait of Hormuz are contested and other conflicts in the region continue to escalate.

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Despite the ceasefire in place, the USA and Iran have once again attacked each other in the Gulf region. According to the US military, it repelled six ballistic missiles fired by Iran at the US allied Gulf states of Kuwait and Bahrain. Another missile missed its target, the US Regional Command (Centcom) responsible for the Middle East announced on Platform X.

The Centcom is said to have repelled six missiles.

Screenshot X/ Centcom

Previously, the US military had reportedly repelled four Iranian drones in the area of the Strait of Hormuz and then attacked radar positions in Iran on the island of Qeshm and in the town of Goruk.

Iran confirms attacks and names US bases as targets

According to the Iranian news agency Tasnim, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards - the Islamic Republic's elite military force - announced shortly afterwards that they had attacked the enemy's bases in the region in response to the US attacks. According to the army, Kuwait's air defenses had previously been deployed against missile and drone attacks. There was also a missile alert in Bahrain shortly afterwards in the early morning.

Meanwhile, the US military denied Iranian claims that the headquarters of the US Navy in the Middle East had been damaged in Bahrain. The claims of both warring parties could not initially be independently verified.

Iran had previously fired several missiles at Kuwait and other states in the Persian Gulf. The US military maintains bases there that are only a few hundred kilometers away from Iran as the crow flies. It was only on Wednesday that a drone struck Kuwait's international airport. At least one person was killed and dozens more were injured.

USA and Iran accuse each other

The leadership in Tehran always refers to its attacks as retaliation for attacks by the US military. The USA, on the other hand, speaks of self-defense in the face of attacks or provocations by Iran.

The Iranian combat drones that were intercepted in the Strait of Hormuz posed a threat to shipping, Centcom announced that night. The subsequent attacks by the US military on Qeschm and in Goruk were carried out to "defend against further attacks". It initially remained unclear which weapons systems were used.

Strait of Hormuz as a bottleneck for the global economy

Shortly after the war began, Iran's armed forces took control of the strait, which is of great importance to the global economy as an export route for fertilizer, oil and liquid gas. For its part, the USA has imposed a naval blockade to prevent Iran from exporting oil.

The situation around the Strait of Hormuz remains tense.

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A ceasefire has actually been in place for almost two months in the war, which began on February 28 with attacks by the USA and Israel against Iran. However, there have recently been repeated isolated attacks by the warring parties. At the same time, tough negotiations for a framework agreement between the USA and Iran are underway to end the war.

In order to better protect itself against Iranian attacks, Kuwait is purchasing defense systems against drone attacks from the USA. According to the US State Department, the sale of corresponding armaments worth around two billion US dollars (around 1.7 billion euros) has been approved. It initially remained unclear when the system would be delivered. Arms deals often involve long-term procurement periods.

Trump: Iran still has a fifth of its missiles

According to estimates by US President Donald Trump, Iran still has a good fifth of its missile arsenal. Most of the drone factories, launch pads and missile production facilities have been shut down, he told NBC News. "But they still have capacity. They still have some missiles and some drones." Trump added: "In percentage terms, I would say maybe 21 to 22 percent of their missiles." That is still a lot, but not what they had at the beginning.

According to US President Donald Trump's estimate, Iran still has a good fifth of its missile arsenal

Jacquelyn Martin/AP/dpa

It remained unclear what Trump's estimate of Iran's missile arsenal was based on. Recently, there have been repeated media reports citing US officials or intelligence findings suggesting that Iran still has a large proportion of its missiles. The New York Times, for example, reported in mid-May that Iran still had around 70 percent of its mobile launchers and around 70 percent of its missile arsenal. The Washington Post quoted similar figures.

Conflict between Hezbollah and Israel also continues

Meanwhile, the fighting between the Lebanese Hezbollah militia and Israel is also continuing, although a ceasefire is actually in place in this conflict too. During the night, sirens sounded again in several areas in northern Israel. A drone had been intercepted, the Israeli army announced on Telegram. Two other drones had fallen near the area where Israeli forces were deployed in southern Lebanon. There were no casualties.

According to the US State Department, Israel and Lebanon had agreed on Thursday night on a new attempt to implement the ceasefire, which has so far had little de facto effect. The Lebanese government is not a party to the war and has only limited influence over Hezbollah. However, Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran and was not involved in the negotiations, rejected the conditions.