US bombs Iran for 5th day straight, Islamic Republic claims strikes on bases in Kuwait & Jordan

The US Central Command (Centcom) has announced the conclusion of its latest wave of strikes against Iran.

The Centcom said the evening wave of strikes against the Islamic Republic ended at 9 pm ET on Wednesday.

In a statement on X, the Centcom said the operation targeted Iranian command centres, air defence sites, missile and drone capabilities, and coastal surveillance facilities in an effort to further degrade Iran's ability to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. It added that precision-guided munitions were used to strike targets at multiple locations, including the port of Bandar Abbas.

“Earlier this morning, American forces struck coastal defence and cruise missile sites on Greater Tunb Island during a 90-minute wave. The U.S. military is holding Iran accountable at the Commander in Chief's direction,” the Centcom said, sharing a video that purportedly showed some of the strikes.

While the US military did not provide a detailed list of the locations targeted, Iranian state media reported that Semnan Airport, east of Tehran, as well as Khondab, Qeshm Island, and the Sirik area in Hormozgan Province had come under attack.

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The United States on Wednesday intensified strikes against the Islamic Republic for a fifth consecutive day, while Iranian retaliation continued into Thursday, with Kuwait and Jordan reporting attacks.

Iranian state media reported that the military struck Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan, targeting a radar site, communications equipment, and fuel tanks used by US forces. It also claimed that Iran attacked Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, destroying an early-warning radar associated with a short-range air defence system.

For five consecutive days, the United States has bombed the Islamic Republic, and Iran has targeted American bases and troops across West Asia, striking Jordan, Bahrain, and Kuwait. The tit-for-tat attacks have unravelled the uneasy ceasefire that had been in place for several weeks. The collapse of the ceasefire has also brought traffic in the Strait of Hormuz to a standstill after Iran declared the waterway closed.

Rather than the core dispute over Iran's nuclear programme, the current escalation has centred on the Strait of Hormuz. While the United States has insisted that the waterway must remain open, Iran has cited the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU) and argued that it explicitly allows it to manage the Strait as it sees fit. In addition to the possible imposition of transit fees, Iran has said that vessels may pass through the strait only via designated routes.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will conduct dialogue with the Sultanate of Oman to define the future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz, in discussion with other Persian Gulf littoral states in line with the applicable international law and the sovereign rights of coastal states of the Strait of Hormuz,” Paragraph 5 of the US-Iran MoU states.

Iran has targeted ships transiting the Strait via routes it considers unauthorised, and the United States has responded to those attacks with strikes of its own. The resulting cycle of retaliation has now continued for five straight days, unravelling the interim ceasefire and once again fuelling concerns over global energy security.