Iran claims Gulf strikes as US reports missile interceptions
Shafaq News- Washington/ Tehran
Iran and the United States offered conflicting accounts on Saturday after missile and drone attacks involving Kuwait, Bahrain, and the Strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Iranian drones were launched toward the Strait of Hormuz and seven ballistic missiles were fired toward Kuwait and Bahrain. It reported intercepting six of the missiles, while a seventh failed to reach its intended target.
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) June 6, 2026
US forces, according to CENTCOM, later struck Iranian coastal surveillance radar sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island, a strategic Iranian island overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, describing the operation as a defensive measure against further maritime threats.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), however, said four oil tankers acting under the guidance of the US military attempted to leave the Strait of Hormuz without authorization despite repeated warnings from its naval forces, prompting Iran to stop one vessel while the others turned back. US drones then struck telecommunications towers on Qeshm Island and in Sirik, after which Iranian forces launched ballistic missiles at Kuwait's Ali Al Salem Air Base and facilities linked to the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
The US Command denied Iranian claims that the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain had been damaged and said no US personnel were harmed.
Meanwhile, Kuwait's General Staff confirmed that air defense systems were confronting “hostile missile and drone attacks,” noting that sounds of explosions were linked to interception operations.
تتصدى حالياً الدفاعات الجوية الكويتية لهجمات صاروخية وطائرات مسيرة معادية.تنوه رئاسة الأركان العامة للجيش أن أصوات الانفجارات إن سمعت فهي نتيجة اعتراض منظومات الدفاع الجوي للهجمات المعادية.يرجى من الجميع التقيد بتعليمات الأمن والسلامة الصادرة عن الجهات المختصة.… pic.twitter.com/88tTHBcKAd
— KUWAIT ARMY - الجيش الكويتي (@KuwaitArmyGHQ) June 6, 2026
Bahrain had not commented at the time of publication.
Earlier this week, US forces carried out what Washington described as self-defense strikes on an IRGC communications tower on Qeshm Island. Hours later, Iran announced missile and drone attacks against US-linked targets and Gulf states, claiming it had struck the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain and a US air base in the region.
