US, Iran trade strikes as Bahrain and tanker hit in Hormuz

U.S. and Iranian strikes widened the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz on June 27, with Bahrain reporting drone attacks, a tanker hit by a projectile and a cargo ship already damaged in the waterway. The exchanges raised the risk of a broader spillover in a chokepoint that carries a major share of global oil and commercial shipping.

The U.S. military struck Iranian missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar positions after an Iranian drone hit a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, escalating the confrontation beyond the original battlefield. Iran then said it had hit targets linked to U.S. forces in response to the American airstrikes, while both sides accused each other of violating an agreement reached last week to end a four-month conflict.

Bahrain said it was targeted by Iranian drones, placing renewed pressure on a small island state that sits at the center of U.S. military posture in the Gulf. The U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet is based at Naval Support Activity Bahrain in Manama’s Juffair district, making any strike on Bahrain immediately relevant to American regional defense planning and force protection.

Britain’s maritime security agency said a tanker was struck by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring how quickly the fighting is spilling into commercial traffic. Earlier in the same escalation cycle, U.S. officials said Iranian missile and drone attacks aimed at Bahrain, Kuwait and regional shipping were intercepted or failed to reach their targets, showing that air defenses across the Gulf were already engaged.

The latest attacks came as the ceasefire or interim peace deal that had paused the four-month war showed signs of strain. With Bahrain under threat, U.S. forces exchanging strikes with Iran and a vessel hit in one of the world’s most sensitive shipping lanes, the conflict is now testing both maritime security and Washington’s security commitments in the Persian Gulf.