US attacks bridges after Tehran retaliates across region

Qatar, Bahrain and Jordan all said they had prevented fresh Iranian airstrikes.

Qatar’s Defense Ministry said in a post on the social media platform X that the Gulf country’s armed forces “intercepted a missile attack that targeted the State of Qatar.” Qatar’s Interior Ministry later said that a child was injured by falling debris caused by the blockage.

Bahrain’s military, known as the Bahrain Defense Force, also said it intercepted several Iranian airstrikes on Friday.

Jordan’s military said it intercepted three Iranian missiles.

“This Friday morning, air defense systems intercepted three Iranian missiles that were entering Jordanian airspace and targeting the kingdom’s territory, and managed to intercept and bring them down,” the Jordanian army said in a statement.

Qatar, Bahrain and Jordan are all US allies in the Middle East and are home to military bases used by the US armed forces.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Friday that a tanker off the coast of Oman has been hit by an unidentified projectile.

UKMTO said the ship was sailing 19 nautical miles (35 kilometers) east of Khasab, Oman, when it was attacked.

The organization said all crew were reported safe as the incident caused “minor structural damage” to the port side of the ship.

The British agency said no environmental impacts had been recorded.

Iran’s health ministry announced on Friday that at least 38 people have died and more than 400 have been injured since fighting resumed last month with the US over control of the Strait of Hormuz.

“The number of injured in US attacks since June 22 has exceeded 400, and 38 compatriots have been martyred,” Tehran Health Ministry spokesman Hossein Karmanpour wrote on Twitter.

“These include 22 injured women, three martyred women, nine injured below 18 years of age and one martyr below 18 years of age,” he said.

China and Pakistan have called for a ceasefire and the resumption of talks between the US and Iran.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Islamabad counterpart Ishaq Dar jointly “expressed concern over the worsening of the current situation, and called on relevant parties to immediately cease hostilities… (and) return to dialogue,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement after the ministers’ meeting in Shanghai.

Wang said the agreement was “hard-earned”, adding that “peace is before our eyes, (we) cannot fall at the last hurdle and even more so cannot lose what we have achieved.”

Both China and Pakistan have been mediating the months-long war over Iran and the broader Middle East.

A tower at Iran’s key Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman appears to have collapsed amid US strikes on Friday.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared a photo purportedly showing a surveillance tower tilted towards the ground, surrounded by a thick cloud of gray smoke.

Chabahar port is a vital trade link for Iran’s landlocked neighbor Afghanistan and is run with India’s support.

This facility has come under repeated American attacks.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Friday it had attacked the US special operations command center in al-Tanf, Syria, in response to the killing of Iranian soldiers in Iranshahr, Tehran’s state media reported.

“The IRGC has announced a surprise attack on the enemy special operations command center in Syria’s al-Tanf region in retaliation for the bloodshed of martyred Iranian soldiers in Iranshahr,” state broadcaster Tasnim posted on Telegram.

There was no immediate statement from the Syrian government or the US military.

Syria has sought to avoid involvement in the Middle East war that has engulfed its neighbors Lebanon and Iraq.

In February, the US military announced that it had completed the withdrawal from the Al-Tanf base, which is located at the border junction between Syria, Jordan and Iraq.

At least seven people were killed in US air strikes on bridges in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Khamir, according to Iran’s state news agency IRNA.

The attacks mark an expansion of the US military campaign against Iran, with US forces increasingly targeting infrastructure after President Donald Trump warned that bridges and other key facilities could be hit.

US Central Command said it struck dozens of targets during its latest overnight operation, the sixth consecutive night of US strikes. Iranian media also reported attacks near Tehran and in Semnan province.

Meanwhile, Iran launched fresh missile attacks against America’s allies in the Gulf. Qatar twice urged residents to seek shelter as air defenses intercepted incoming missiles, with officials reporting that a child was injured by falling debris.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that it had completed its latest major wave of strikes against Iran on Friday.

Earlier, America had attacked Iran for the sixth consecutive night.

CENTCOM’s Friday statement said US forces, including fighter jets, aerial drones and warships, had struck “dozens of Iranian military targets” such as coastal surveillance and air defense sites, military logistics infrastructure and maritime capabilities by launching precision munitions.

“CENTCOM is further undermining Iranian military capabilities and blaming Iran for recent attacks on commercial shipping,” the statement said.

Kuwait’s air defenses are again engaged in repelling Iranian missile and drone attacks, the Kuwaiti military said on Friday.

A statement from the Kuwait Army General Staff said the explosions heard in the country were the result of its air defense systems intercepting the latest barrage of airstrikes.

Reports early Friday said multiple explosions were heard in Qatar’s capital Doha, as Iran targets US military bases in neighboring Middle Eastern states.

A government security alert beeped on mobile phones, asking people to seek shelter and warning that the security threat level was “increased”.

Following reports of the blasts, Qatar’s Defense Ministry issued a statement saying the country’s armed forces had “intercepted a missile attack.”

Iran has told Yemen’s Houthi rebels to be prepared to disrupt shipping through the Red Sea if the United States attacks Iranian power infrastructure, according to sources cited by Reuters news agency.

Three sources familiar with the matter said the proposal has been discussed within Iran’s leadership and communicated to the Houthis, though neither Tehran nor the Yemeni group have publicly confirmed the report.

A source close to the Houthis told Reuters the group has deployed drones and missiles near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, the southern entrance to the Red Sea, and is awaiting orders.

This development raises concerns of further escalation of regional conflict. With the Strait of Hormuz already disrupted by the US-Iran war, any threat to shipping through the Red Sea could impact another major route for global energy supplies and international trade.

Iran’s judiciary has rejected US President Donald Trump’s statement that an American citizen detained in Iran has been released.

According to Iranian state media, judicial officials said a check of prison records showed that no American prisoners matching Trump’s description had been released or exchanged.

Earlier, Trump had said that a US citizen, who he described as having been “wrongfully detained” since 2024, has safely left Iran, calling the move a “gesture of goodwill” from Tehran.

The conflicting statements increase uncertainty about the status of any American detainees in Iran.

Washington and Tehran continue to signal that communication between the two sides remains open despite ongoing military tensions.

The United States says it has launched strikes on Iranian targets for the sixth consecutive night, as Iran stepped up attacks on US-linked sites across the region.

Iran has reportedly instructed Yemen’s Houthi rebels to be prepared to disrupt shipping through the Red Sea if the United States targets Iran’s power infrastructure, raising new concerns about global energy supplies.

Stay tuned for the latest developments, analysis and reactions to this fast-moving story.