Iran unleashed drone and missile attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday, June 28, 2026, just hours after former President Donald Trump threatened to wipe the country "off the map." The Islamic Republic's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard targeted the two Gulf states in response to US strikes on Iran, warning that negotiations to end the war would come to a "complete halt" if Washington continued its attacks.
Damage in Bahrain
Bahrain's Interior Ministry reported that Iran's strikes damaged a block of flats near the international airport, but no one was killed. The ministry released photos showing an eight-storey building with the top floor completely destroyed, filled with rubble and windows blown out. The damaged building was not near the headquarters of the US Navy's 5th Fleet in Manama, which has come under repeated attack during the war.
Bahrain's Foreign Ministry issued a statement denouncing what it called "a dangerous escalation," which it said reveals that Tehran's actions are "not a passing act, nor an isolated incident." The statement described the attack as a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression against the sovereignty of the kingdom and the security of its citizens.
Kuwait Intercepts Missiles
Kuwait, which hosts a major US army base, reported detecting and intercepting two ballistic missiles. There were no reports of injuries or damage. The Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for both attacks, stating it had targeted Al Asad Air Base in Kuwait. The Guard added: "Let the enemy know that violating the ceasefire... will lead to a complete halt of ongoing processes."
The Guard, which controls Iran's ballistic missile arsenal and answers only to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is thought to wield even greater influence now in the Islamic Republic.
US-Iran Crossfire Intensifies
The US and Iran had already traded attacks over the weekend. The US military's Central Command said it struck Iranian military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defence sites, drone storage facilities and minelayer capabilities on Sunday. This followed an attack on a ship at sea on Saturday morning: the Panamanian-flagged tanker Kiku, which carried crude oil for Qatar's state-run energy company, a key negotiator between Iran and the United States.
In a social media post on Truth Social, Donald Trump said the US had "struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations, and coastal radar sites, for violating the Cease Fire Agreement, AGAIN!" He warned of a point where the US may no longer be able to be reasonable "and will be forced to militarily complete the job." He added: "If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!"
Background to the Conflict
The incident came after an Iranian drone struck a merchant vessel off the coast of Oman on Thursday, and the US military retaliated with strikes. The US military said "Iran had a chance to honour the ceasefire agreement" but "elected not to" when its forces attacked the Kiku. Efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz without Iran's direct oversight sparked the latest crossfire gripping the region.
A multinational maritime body overseen by the US Navy announced on Saturday that it would expand a route near Oman to allow for both inbound and outbound traffic, triggering a new flashpoint with Tehran. Iran insists that after the war it alone must govern the Strait, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf that once carried a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas. The global community has long considered the Strait an international passageway, despite its location in Iran and Oman's territorial waters.
