Bahrain says Iranian drones attacked kingdom after U.S. strikes

Bahrain said a number of Iranian drones targeted the kingdom early Saturday, hours after U.S. strikes on Iranian military sites and coastal radar positions widened the confrontation across the Gulf. The attack landed squarely on one of Washington’s closest security partners in the region, just as a fragile interim truce was already fraying.

The Bahrain Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the strike a flagrant violation of sovereignty and a threat to the safety of citizens and residents. Bahrain said it reserved the right to defend itself under international law, and cited U.N. Security Council Resolution 2817 (2026), which it said was backed by 136 countries. Manama also said Iran had already committed under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding to halt military operations and respect regional sovereignty.

The escalation carried immediate implications for U.S. deterrence. Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, putting American forces close to the front line if the exchange broadens. The U.S. military said its overnight strikes hit Iranian missile and drone locations and coastal radar sites, and Washington said Friday’s strikes came in response to an Iranian drone strike on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz.

The diplomatic track was moving at the same time. Marco Rubio was in the Gulf for a meeting with Gulf Cooperation Council foreign ministers that ended with a joint call for Iran’s attacks to stop and for the Strait of Hormuz to remain fully open. JD Vance said on social media that if there were disagreements about the ceasefire agreement, Iran should “pick up the phone,” adding that violence would be met with violence. Reuters has said the U.S. and Iran were still negotiating the details of the arrangement, including shipping through the strait and the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

The danger to commerce was visible again on Saturday when a British military maritime center said a tanker was attacked in the Strait of Hormuz, though the crew was safe and no environmental damage was reported. Earlier in June, Iran launched ballistic missiles and drones at Bahrain and Kuwait, and some incoming missiles aimed at Bahrain were intercepted by U.S. and Bahraini air defenses. Those earlier attacks had already raised alarms across the Gulf, where shipping operators were watching tanker schedules, berth planning and crude loadings. The latest accusation widened the risk to U.S. troops, Gulf infrastructure and tankers moving through one of the world’s most sensitive waterways.