A new series of bombings launched in the last few hours by the Iranian Army and the Revolutionary Guard has caused at least three injuries in Qatar and has activated alarms in Oman, Qatar, Jordan, and Bahrain, in a context of warnings from the authorities of the Islamic republic about the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, which has remained completely closed since last Saturday.
"We have taken control of the strait by force, and by force we will preserve it," said this morning on social networks the spokesman for the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament, Ebrahim Rezaei. His words come a few hours after the chief Iranian negotiator and president of the Legislature, Mohamed Baqer Qalifab, warned the United States that the era of unilateral pacts "is over," in allusion to the deep discrepancies over the interpretation of the memorandum of understanding that governed the fragile ceasefire until now.
In Bahrain, emergency sirens have sounded up to three times throughout the morning, while the kingdom's Ministry of Interior has asked citizens for calm and recommended moving to the nearest safe shelter. In parallel, security sources in Oman have informed the official ONA agency of the existence of "several drone attacks against targets in the Musandam governorate," an Omani mountainous enclave that penetrates the Strait of Hormuz and borders the United Arab Emirates.
The most serious incidents have been recorded in Qatar, whose Ministry of Interior has reported that at least three people have been injured, including a minor, "due to the fall of shrapnel during interception operations." The injured "are receiving the necessary medical attention," the Ministry added, without offering further details for now.
In relation to these events, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard has only reported a ballistic missile attack against the Al Udeid air base. Early in the morning, the Iranian Army had also announced an attack with explosive drones against a Patriot air defense system, an ammunition depot, and a radar station belonging to US forces in Kuwait.
For its part, the official Jordanian news agency, Petra, has reported impacts from at least three Iranian missiles before dawn in different areas of the country, which would have only caused "minor material damage". Moments before, Iran had confirmed the launch of a ballistic missile against the Prince Hassan air base which, according to the Iranian Army, would have destroyed hangars with MQ-9 drones inside, as well as a control center.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) had communicated early this Sunday a new round of attacks against Iran, in response to the Revolutionary Guard's offensive against a commercial vessel which, according to Washington, would have disregarded its instructions, an incident that has led Tehran to decree the closure of the Strait of Hormuz "until further notice".
According to Washington, in this third round of attacks against Iran during the week, approximately 140 Iranian military targets have been hit, including "Iranian missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, ammunition depots, communication networks, and coastal surveillance posts".
The official Iranian agency IRNA has so far confirmed attacks in five towns in the province of Bushehr: Asaluyeh, Dir, Bushehr, Dashti, and Tangestan, all located on or near the country's southern coast.