By St. Pauls News Team
June 28 2026 | International
Iran launched a new wave of drone and missile attacks against Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday in retaliation for recent U.S. airstrikes, while warning that continued American military action could bring negotiations aimed at ending the conflict to a standstill.
The latest escalation comes as tensions continue to mount over access to the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategically important shipping routes. Iran has strongly opposed efforts to reopen the waterway without its direct oversight after a multinational maritime task force, coordinated by the U.S. Navy, announced plans to expand a shipping corridor near Oman.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi insisted that Tehran must retain authority over navigation through the narrow passage, which connects the Persian Gulf to international waters and carries a significant share of global oil and natural gas exports.
“Any attempt to establish new or separate arrangements from those currently being carried out by the Islamic Republic of Iran will only lead to further complications, delay the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and increase the level of tension,” Araghchi said.
While Iran maintains that it should oversee activity in the strait, the international community widely regards the waterway as an international shipping route despite its location between Iranian and Omani territorial waters. In recent days, Iranian forces have reportedly targeted vessels using a route on the Omani side during a United Nations-backed evacuation effort.
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to secure a temporary ceasefire remain uncertain. Washington and Tehran have been negotiating the terms of an interim agreement covering navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, the lifting of U.S. restrictions on Iranian ports, sanctions relief, and the future of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile. The memorandum of understanding signed earlier this month gives both sides 60 days to finalize the details.
Pakistan, which has been serving as a key mediator, previously announced that negotiations were expected to resume on Tuesday. However, Iranian officials have warned that further U.S. military strikes could result in a complete suspension of the talks.
The proposed interim agreement is intended to halt hostilities across the region before broader political and security issues are addressed. Ongoing violence elsewhere, including renewed clashes in Lebanon where an Israeli soldier was reportedly killed by Hezbollah fire on Sunday, has further complicated the diplomatic process.
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for Sunday’s attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait.
Kuwait, home to a major U.S. military installation, said its air defense systems intercepted several Iranian drones and two missiles shortly after the U.S. strikes on Iran. Officials reported no casualties or damage.
In Bahrain, authorities said an Iranian strike damaged a residential building near the country’s international airport. No fatalities were reported. Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, although officials said the damaged building was located away from the naval base.
Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attacks, describing them as “a dangerous escalation” that demonstrates what it called “a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression” by Tehran.
Later on Sunday, Qatar reported that one civilian had been killed and another injured by shrapnel linked to ongoing military operations after a vessel failed to return at its scheduled time on Saturday. Qatari authorities did not provide additional details surrounding the incident.
The latest exchanges underscore growing instability across the Gulf region and raise fresh concerns that continued military escalation could undermine diplomatic efforts to prevent a broader regional conflict.