US strikes Iran and Bahrain warns of incoming fire as clashes over shipping routes escalate

US strikes Iran and Bahrain warns of incoming fire as clashes over shipping routes escalate 0 seconds of 38 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Trump vows US will strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain ‘very soon’ 01:38 00:00 00:38 00:38 More Videos 01:38 Trump vows US will strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain ‘very soon’ 01:00 Momeni meets Pakistan officials as Iran and US continue attacks 01:15 Trump celebrates World Cup success, comments on action against Iran 01:49 US gas prices back up to an average of $4 a gallon again as the US and Iran launch attacks 00:56 Rubio explains latest US position on Iran to ASEAN counterparts 01:46 Trump warns Iran will 'pay a big price' as he heads to Dover to honor fallen service members 00:25 Bridge near Bandar Abbas severely damaged in latest US strikes 01:05 Cocktails with a kick: Late Night Close 1 of 2 | The U.S. military announced the 13th night of strikes against Iran as clashes escalate over shipping routes. The attacks came after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, potentially widening the Iran war as international oil topped $100 a barrel. 2 of 2 | A group of people stands in shallow water as a cargo ship appears anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP) By JULIA FRANKEL Updated 7:59 AM MESZ, July 24, 2026 Leer en español Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit JERUSALEM (AP) — Bahrain activated its sirens early Friday, warning residents to shelter from detected fire hours after the U.S. military said it had wrapped up its 13th night of strikes against Iran. The Gulf states have come under frequent fire over the past week as the U.S. and Iran exchange escalating strikes in fighting that began with a struggle over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media reported that four people had been killed and nine injured in the bombardment. The previous day, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, potentially widening the Iran war as international oil topped $100 a barrel. U.S. Central Command said the latest barrage was designed to “further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters” as the Americans push to regain control over the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and gas transited in peacetime. It said the strikes ended shortly before 5 a.m. local time Friday. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi of Iraq, which has close ties to both the U.S. and Iran, was in Tehran on Thursday to call for peace and dialogue. He promised not to allow Iraqi territory to be used for attacks on Iran, his office said. Al-Zaidi met with Trump earlier this month in Washington. Four people were killed and five wounded in a U.S. missile attack on the outskirts of Ahvaz on the Karun River, Iranian state media said. An attack in Lorestan province in Western Iran injured two, state media said, while two more were injured by explosions in the port city of Bandar Abbas, a critical hub for moving military supplies as well as trade cargo. US military launches new strikes on Iran as clashes escalate over shipping routes 3 MIN READ A new threat by Yemen’s Houthis could widen the Iran war and put another trade chokepoint at risk 1 MIN READ A new threat by Yemen’s Houthis could widen the Iran war and put another trade chokepoint at risk 1 MIN READ Blasts were also reported on Iran’s Qeshm Island, home to stores of naval assets including drone boats that Iran can use to attack vessels on the Strait of Hormuz, as well as in Isfahan province, where there is a major Iranian air base as well as one of Iran’s nuclear sites. More strikes reportedly hit Iran’s southwest Khuzestan province and southern Fars province. Meanwhile, the Houthis threatened to shut down another key trade route with the world economy already reeling from Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is a vital shipping chokepoint connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. Around 12% of the world’s trade, including a fourth of global container traffic, passes through there, moving between Europe and Asia via Egypt’s Suez Canal. The Houthi attacks put at risk oil shipments from Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port on the Red Sea and present a “double whammy” on top of the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, said maritime data and analysis firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence. Saudi Arabia has diverted millions of barrels a day of oil exports to Yanbu via an overland pipeline as the war has bottled up the Persian Gulf. President Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthis if their attacks on ships continue. As the rhetoric escalated, so did economic fallout. The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, spiked more than 6% to about $100 a barrel. That’s the highest level since May, before the two sides reached a preliminary peace agreement last month that has since collapsed. Iran says it has the right to manage traffic and potentially charge fees in the Strait of Hormuz, which was open to all toll-free before the war. It has attacked ships using a route through the strait that is overseen by U.S. forces and intended to be outside Tehran’s control. Trump said on social media Thursday that sanctioned Iranian funds in the possession of the U.S. will cover the expense of fixing boats damaged in the war. “Please let this statement serve to represent, until further notice, that from this point forth, any and all damages done to Ships, Cargo, or anything related thereto, will be paid for by Iranian Money that the United States has in its possession, and controls,” Trump said. It was unclear what legal mechanisms Trump would use to access and spend the funds, but he said that doing so would be “the fair and equitable thing to do.” Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the suggestion, writing on X that “once governments normalize confiscation, no one’s assets are safe. Ensuing chaos will not be pretty or peaceful.” JULIA FRANKEL Frankel, based in Jerusalem, has reported from across Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Her reporting focuses on war, human rights, displacement and criminal justice. twitter mailto