US and Iran trade more strikes in Gulf as fears of escalation mount

What the report says

BBC World News reports that Iran says it launched drone attacks on US military facilities and bases across the Middle East after what it described as a 13th straight night of US strikes on Iranian territory. Iranian state media said explosions were reported in several parts of the country, including along the Gulf coast, and that four people were killed and five wounded in a south-western attack.

The reported exchanges widened across the region. Iran said it had attacked US bases in Kuwait, while Bahrain sounded air raid sirens and Iranian state media reported alarms in Jordan. AFP and Reuters, cited by the BBC, reported that a drone crash temporarily halted flights at Erbil International Airport in Iraq before operations resumed. US Central Command said its latest strikes targeted Iranian command centres, drone storage sites, communications networks, coastal surveillance locations and maritime capabilities.

The escalation comes amid a dispute over President Donald Trump’s statement that frozen Iranian assets controlled by the US could be used to cover damage to ships and cargo in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned that idea as a dangerous precedent. The BBC notes that a June US-Iran memorandum had included a commitment by Washington to make frozen or restricted Iranian funds available for Iran’s use.

The conflict is raising broader regional and economic concerns. The BBC reports that tensions have climbed since early July, following the breakdown of a ceasefire linked to reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Threats to shipping, including from Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis in the Red Sea, have helped push crude oil above $100 a barrel, according to the report.