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Smoke rises following reported military strikes as fighting between the United States and Iran continues to spread across the Gulf region. |
Iran Expands Gulf Attacks as US-Iran Conflict Intensifies
DUBAI — July 18, 2026
Iran launched a new wave of attacks targeting Gulf states on Saturday after the United States carried out a seventh consecutive night of strikes against Iranian military sites, marking another escalation in the conflict following the collapse of a fragile ceasefire.
The U.S. military said its latest operation targeted surveillance facilities, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage sites and maritime capabilities. U.S. Central Command said fighter aircraft, drones and warships were used in the operation as more than 50,000 American personnel remain deployed across the Middle East.
Iranian media reported that strikes damaged power infrastructure and desalination facilities in the southern city of Jask, disrupting drinking water supplies to nearby villages. State media also reported attacks in several other locations, including Hormozgan Province, where officials said three people were killed and eight others injured. Reports also described damage to bridges, a road tunnel and other infrastructure in southern Iran.
Maritime tensions also intensified. The United States said it continued enforcing a naval blockade by redirecting and boarding commercial vessels, while Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they intercepted ships that violated its navigation rules in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media also reported explosions involving two oil tankers after they passed through a mined route south of the strait, a claim the U.S. military rejected as false.
Elsewhere, armed men seized another vessel off Yemen, adding to growing concerns about the security of shipping routes linking the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, two of the world's most important energy transit corridors.
Iran also announced attacks on Gulf countries hosting U.S. military facilities, including Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan. Kuwaiti authorities said an Iranian strike damaged a power generation and water desalination station, causing a fire and disrupting electricity production. The Kuwaiti military later said it was responding to Iranian drone attacks.
The Revolutionary Guards also claimed they struck a U.S. drone storage facility in Bahrain and targeted the country's main artificial intelligence center with missiles and drones. These claims had not been independently verified.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres expressed concern over the growing conflict, particularly attacks affecting civilian infrastructure across Iran and the wider region.
With both sides continuing military operations and tensions spreading across key energy-producing states, concerns are increasing over regional stability, civilian safety and the potential impact on global oil supplies.
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