On Tuesday and Wednesday, July 7 and 8, 2026, forces under U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out a series of airstrikes against targets in Iran. Authorities in Tehran responded by attacking U.S. military targets in Bahrain and Kuwait.
July 7
U.S. initiated strikes against targets in Iran:
U.S. Central Command forces have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway. The U.S. strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s demonstrated aggression was unwarranted, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire.
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U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces completed a new round of offensive strikes against Iran, July 7, hitting over 80 targets with precision munitions as an immediate response to Iran’s latest attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. forces struck Iranian air defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities, and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats in and near the strait to degrade Iran’s ability to continue attacking international commerce flowing through the international trade corridor.
Iran recently attacked three commercial vessels transiting the strait including Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan, and Liberian-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity. The unwarranted aggression by Iranian forces is a clear and dangerous violation of the ceasefire and undermines freedom of navigation.
CENTCOM forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed.
U.S. Central Command forces have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway. The U.S. strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 7, 2026
Explosions on Qeshm Island:
Multiple explosions in the last few minutes on Qeshm Island in Southern Iran.
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
Explosions in Sirik Bandar Abbas:
Explosions from U.S. retaliatory strikes also heard in Sirik and Bandar Abbas, Hormozgan Province of Southern Iran.
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
Several fast boats operated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGC-N) were reportedly targeted at the Port of Sirik, in the Hormozgan Province of Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/aPey4LpT3V
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
Fires seen burning at the Port of Shahid Haqqani in Bandar Abbas, Southern Iran, following tonight’s wave of retaliatory strikes against Iranian military and infrastructure sites by the U.S. Air Force and Navy. pic.twitter.com/ccZPuZvDPG
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
Additional U.S. strikes now being reported in the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas.
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
According to @BarakRavid, citing a U.S. official, today’s strikes in Iran, that targeted air defense sites, surface-to-air missiles, coastal surveillance systems, drone launch sites, port facilities, and anti-ship cruise missile installations, were scaled up ‘four or five’ times,… pic.twitter.com/3uONyqAGaU
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 7, 2026
July 8
Iran conducted retaliatory strikes on U.S. Fifth Fleet Headquarters in Bahrain:
Early reports from Iranian state-backed news outlets are now saying that Uran has targeted Bahrain, specifically the U.S. Fifth Fleet Headquarters there, in retaliation for U.S. retaliatory strikes on key military infrastructure across Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/HlJ5fpUFhg
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
An additional wave of Iranian strikes appears to be underway, as Bahrain’s ministry of the interior has announced that alarm sirens are active, saying people should seek shelter. pic.twitter.com/woqXC9vaP0
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
…and targets in Kuwait:
According to a release from the Kuwaiti Army, Kuwait is now under attack from Iranian drones and missiles, as Kuwaiti air defenses work to mitigate the threat. pic.twitter.com/vOkIZNT8WL
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Iran struck 85 targets total in Bahrain and Kuwait:
According to Iranian state-backed news outlet, Fars, the IRGC has said that in response to U.S. retaliatory strikes tonight, they targeted 85 targets in Bahrain and Kuwait, saying that Kuwait’s Ali Salem Airbase and the U.S. Fifth Fleet Headquarters in Manama, Bahrain were… pic.twitter.com/atoyQPuifa
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
The sirens are again sounding in Bahrain. https://t.co/DuM9XC6ozT
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
U.S. conducted a second wave of strikes against Iran:
At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway.
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U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces completed an additional round of strikes against Iran, July 8, to further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. forces struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline. The latest strikes follow successful execution of offensive strikes in Iran the night before.
According to a release from U.S. Central Command, in the most recent wave of U.S. strikes against Iran in response to the Iranian targeting of commercial shipping, 90 military targets, including military logistics infrastructure, missile and drone storage sites, air defense… pic.twitter.com/c1sRyvbN5H
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 9, 2026
At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 8, 2026
Additional strikes are now being reported in Sirik, Iran as new U.S. strikes are likely underway. pic.twitter.com/MfNQxkTQDH
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
According to a release from U.S. Central Command, in the most recent wave of U.S. strikes against Iran in response to the Iranian targeting of commercial shipping, 90 military targets, including military logistics infrastructure, missile and drone storage sites, air defense… pic.twitter.com/c1sRyvbN5H
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Footage reportedly shows U.S. strikes on Iran’s Chabahar Port in Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/0r0TvLMrwF
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
U.S. strikes targeted a base operated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the Southern Iranian city of Bushehr, on the coast of the Persian Gulf. pic.twitter.com/Lt7wW6JAuL
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Additional footage from Bushehr, Iran following a U.S. strike on an IRGC and/or a Basij Security Forces barracks. Reports indicate a large number of dead and wounded at this time. https://t.co/m2wqzGzgy6
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Larges fires burn in the Iranian port city of Bushehr, on the coast of the Persian Gulf, following renewed U.S. strikes against military targets in Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/iQvH7bt6RJ
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Video footage shows the moment that U.S. strikes targeted Chabahar City in Southern Iran earlier tonight, with the strikes reportedly impacting an air and naval base operated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). pic.twitter.com/AwXdsgGnXC
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
US forces have carried out a widespread series of strikes targeting Iranian coastal targets tonight. pic.twitter.com/oi4NVMNlhq
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) July 8, 2026
Explosions from U.S. strikes tonight rock the Port of Chabahar in Southern Iran on the coast of the Gulf of Oman, in retaliation for continued attacks by Iran against commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. pic.twitter.com/Td2dKBacut
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
U.S. strikes are continuing tonight against Iran, with multiple blasts heard moments ago in Choghadak, Bushher Province.
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Significant damage seen to the Maritime Control Tower in Chabahar from tonight’s wave of U.S. strikes against the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/ufuua0NshT
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Explosions from U.S. strikes are continuing to be heard in Southern Iran. https://t.co/vU3IEGgdaK
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Fires seen burning and thick black smoke rises from an Iranian military base near Chahak, Bushehr Province, that was targeted during tonight’s wave of U.S. strikes against coastal areas of Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/J0VoDnU2Aj
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Multiple large explosions, likely from U.S. strikes, filmed earlier at an Iranian military base near the city of Iranshahr, in the Sistan and Baluchestan Province of Southeastern Iran. Iranshahr is located roughly 100 miles inland from Chabahar. pic.twitter.com/ph3nO037Wp
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Black smoke rises from several sites targeted in tonight’s wave of U.S. strikes in Choghadak, Bushher Province of Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/BezgQGz8Fs
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Local officials have now confirmed that U.S. strikes indeed targeted Iranshahr Airport/Airbase in the Southeastern Iranian city of Iranshahr, which is partially utilized by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force (IRGC-AF). pic.twitter.com/HG6rfkDpBB
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Explosions, the result of possible U.S. strikes against a rail bridge, were heard earlier in the Golestan Province of Northeastern Iran, bordering the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan. Golestan hasn’t been targeted since the height of the Iran War, particularly in March 2026. pic.twitter.com/E7PiCBrul9
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
According to Axios, President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One earlier that Iranian officials “called a little while ago. They want to make a deal.”
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 8, 2026
Facility operated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force (IRGC-AF) burns near Choghadak in the Bushehr Province of Southern Iran, following strikes earlier tonight by the U.S. Air Force and Navy. pic.twitter.com/jt38cIwX97
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
According to Axios’ Barak Ravid, citing a senior official, the U.S. Air Force bombed two railway bridges in Iran as part of strikes on Wednessay, appearing to confirm reports regarding the targeting of a train line in the Golestan Province of Northeastern Iran, near the border… pic.twitter.com/mA12KMcL94
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Another Iranian retaliation:
Iranian retaliatory strikes are now underway, as Bahrain’s Ministry of the Interior has announced the sounding of sirens and urged citizens to seek shelter. pic.twitter.com/3jvW5wA9ex
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Ballistic missile launches towards Bahrain seen from the Bushehr Province of Southern Iran. pic.twitter.com/v7ouvYCnEZ
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Qatari Interior Ministry: “Security threat level is high and everyone must adhere to staying in homes and safe places.”
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Alert sent to cell phones in Kuwait. pic.twitter.com/SCLOyOU7sT
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Iranian retaliatory strikes have now also targeted Kuwait, as the Kuwaiti Army has announced that Kuwaiti air defenses are now working to mitigate the threat of Iranian air threats. People have been urged to seek shelter. pic.twitter.com/cNWXUL7aMf
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Video footage showing the impact of an Iranian short-range ballistic missile earlier near the Headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Manama, Bahrain. pic.twitter.com/1KEjHAqkVN
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
New sirens now in Bahrain. https://t.co/MFCQWYzlNp
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
Another wave of Iranian drones and missiles just now against Bahrain. pic.twitter.com/limmyCQE8V
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026
The IRGC has announced that in what they call the “first stage” of Iranian strikes on their Gulf neighbors and U.S, bases and infrastructure, they targeted two U.S. bases in Kuwait, including Ali Salem Airbase, and U.S. bases in Bahrain. pic.twitter.com/qlfcYnh6DA
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 9, 2026