Live: Iran launches retaliatory strikes on U.S. military bases in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain

The U.S. armed forces confirmed on Saturday, July 18, that two more military personnel had been killed in the ongoing war against Iran, pushing the overall death toll to 16. These casualties lay bare a grim new reality: American troops do not need to set foot on enemy soil to face mortal danger in a war driven by drones, guided missiles and warplanes. With U.S. forces stationed at numerous bases throughout West Asia, neighboring countries have been pulled into the line of fire as Tehran's aggression has surged following the collapse of peace negotiations.

Washington announced on Saturday, July 18, that it had launched fresh airstrikes against Iran in retaliation for attacks on American troops based in Jordan — the first U.S. military fatalities since the latest round of hostilities with Tehran was set in motion. CENTCOM posted on X that the operation got underway at 2200 GMT, adding that the strikes were designed to further erode Iran's ability to menace commercial vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz, and to deliver swift punishment to IRGC units that had assaulted American service members in Jordan the night before.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun departed Beirut on Saturday (July 18), heading to Washington where he is scheduled to hold talks with Donald Trump, his office announced. The trip follows the conclusion of the latest round of Lebanon-Israel negotiations held in Italy. This will be the first time a Lebanese head of state has traveled to Washington since Michel Sleiman held talks with Barack Obama back in 2009. Aoun is set to meet senior American officials to discuss the current situation in Lebanon and ways to reinforce the ceasefire, with particular focus on the southern regions, the Presidency stated. The issue of Israel's withdrawal from Lebanese territories currently under its occupation will also feature prominently in the discussions.

Iran's supreme leader declared on Saturday (July 18) that the United States would face 'unforgettable lessons,' even as Washington acknowledged the deaths of two American military personnel — the first such fatalities since the two nations resumed open hostilities. One month after the two adversaries had reached a preliminary deal that has since fallen apart, Tehran hit infrastructure targets across the Gulf in retaliation for a week of escalating American strikes. Iran claimed that U.S. attacks had damaged an airport, a railway station, and several bridges. Iranian strikes targeted an oil facility in Kuwait along with a power and water supply plant, Kuwaiti authorities confirmed. In Bahrain, the armed forces stated that their air defence systems successfully intercepted and repelled a wave of incoming Iranian attacks.

The U.S. Central Command said in a statement released today that two American military personnel posted in Jordan were killed on Thursday while defending against a combined Iranian missile and drone assault.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) has flagged an incident involving a commercial vessel and armed forces roughly 100 nautical miles east of Duqm, Oman. In an advisory published today, UKMTO noted that reports indicate the tanker was approached as part of ongoing military activity in the area, though the agency offered no further specifics.

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has stated that the recent American military strikes have laid bare the fact that President Donald Trump's signature on any agreement is entirely 'worthless and invalid'.

Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei issued a fresh warning stating that should the United States persist with its military attacks, Iran will ensure America faces lessons it will never be able to forget.

With strikes continuing between the two nations, Iran has announced it is stepping back from its commitments under the interim agreement reached with the United States. The deepening confrontation has sharpened fears over the safety of the Strait of Hormuz and stability across the wider region.

A statement from Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is expected to be made public in the coming moments, according to reports from Iranian state media. — Reuters

American forces carried out three separate airstrikes Friday against the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan. — Reuters

Pakistan and Kuwait have jointly appealed to Washington and Tehran to stand by the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) the two sides finalised last month, as hostilities flared up once more around the Strait of Hormuz on Friday. Pakistan's Foreign Office said the appeal emerged from a telephone conversation between Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. The two diplomats held their call on the same day the U.S. and Iran exchanged fresh rounds of strikes, with attacks directed at military installations and infrastructure alike, further intensifying the ongoing battle over the Strait of Hormuz.

Hezbollah conducted a large-scale funeral in southern Lebanon's Majdal Selm on Friday for dozens of its members, most of them fighters who lost their lives in the latest round of clashes with Israel. The Iran-sponsored Shia organisation, which brought Lebanon into the wider Middle East war by launching attacks on Israel on March 2, has consistently refused to disclose its fighter death toll. Even so, the group has organised several funeral ceremonies during the present lull in combat, which took hold after the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding was signed on June 17.

Kuwait confirmed on Friday that Iran struck a power and water facility as well as an oil installation on Kuwaiti territory, accusing Tehran of deliberately going after civilian infrastructure as the West Asia war enters a more perilous phase. The Iranian strikes came after a seventh consecutive night of American air raids on targets inside Iran, which in turn prompted Tehran to hit back at U.S.-allied nations across the Gulf. "A hostile attack struck another electricity and water distillation plant, setting off a fire in one part of the facility," Kuwait's Ministry of Electricity and Water said in an official statement.

The head of the Gulf Cooperation Council has condemned Iran's attacks on civilian facilities, characterising them as war crimes.

President Joseph Aoun of Lebanon departed from Beirut today bound for Washington, where a meeting with Donald Trump awaits him, the Lebanese presidency confirmed. The trip follows the conclusion of Lebanon-Israel talks that took place in Italy. No Lebanese head of state has visited Washington since Michel Sleiman met Barack Obama in 2009, making this the first such trip in seventeen years. Aoun will engage with "several American officials on the situation in Lebanon and ways to strengthen the ceasefire", with a particular emphasis on developments in the south of the country, as well as raising the issue of "the withdrawal of Israel from the Lebanese regions it occupies", according to the presidential office. U.S.-brokered negotiations between Israel and Lebanon got underway in April with the twin aims of achieving a lasting peace treaty and putting a permanent end to the Israel-Hezbollah war.

Iran carried out strikes against Gulf infrastructure today and warned of a "full-scale offensive", retaliating after a seventh straight night of U.S. attacks on Iranian soil. Despite a preliminary ceasefire agreement reached between the two countries one month ago, the fighting has grown fiercer. Tehran has charged that Washington's strikes destroyed an airport, put a rail station out of commission, and brought down several bridges. In retaliation, Iran hit an oil facility in Kuwait and also struck a combined power and water plant, authorities in the Gulf state confirmed. Bahrain's armed forces announced separately that a barrage of incoming Iranian attacks had been intercepted and repelled by its air defence systems.

Kuwait's national oil company reported on Saturday (July 18, 2026) that Iranian strikes had hit a key petroleum installation, leaving several people injured and causing extensive material losses, according to the state news agency KUNA. KUNA quoted the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation as saying that a strategically vital site within the oil sector was subjected to relentless and brutal Iranian attacks, resulting in a number of casualties and considerable physical damage. The company added that the affected location had been fully cleared of personnel and that all those wounded had been given medical attention. — AFP

On Saturday (July 18, 2026), Kuwait formally accused Iran of deliberately attacking civilian locations and essential national infrastructure, coming after confirmed strikes on an oil installation and a power and water supply facility. The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry stated that the repeated assaults on these critical sites revealed a deliberate and hostile approach directed at civilian areas and vital infrastructure, gravely endangering the lives and wellbeing of ordinary people. — AFP

Bahrain set off its air warning sirens for the second time on Saturday, July 18, urging residents to take immediate shelter after authorities tracked what appeared to be approaching drones or missiles. Over the past week, Gulf states have repeatedly come under Iranian fire as the standoff between Washington and Tehran continues to grow more volatile.

Kuwait announced on Saturday, July 18, that Iran had attacked yet another of its power and water treatment plants, setting off a fire within one section of the facility and forcing several electricity generation units to be shut down. The strike occurred just one day after a similar attack on a comparable installation. The country's Ministry of Electricity and Water issued a statement confirming that the hostile assault caused a fire in one of the plant's components, which subsequently resulted in a number of generation units being taken offline. — AFP

Senior Iranian military commander Major General Mohsen Rezaei, citing state broadcaster IRIB, warned that Iran would launch "full-scale offensive operations" if American strikes carried on over the days ahead. "Iran will no longer limit itself to retaliatory, like-for-like responses... and no political border will be safe," he declared. — AFP

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported on Saturday (July 18) that American strikes on Hormozgan province, in the southern part of the country, had killed three people and left eight others injured. Moments after the U.S. assault was announced, residents of the central Iranian city of Yazd reported hearing five separate blasts, according to IRNA. Mehr, a separate state-affiliated outlet, said explosions had taken place across "several provinces in the south" of the country. — AFP

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had struck a location at Bahrain's Sheikh Isa Air Base where U.S. combat aircraft had been assembled, as well as an intelligence data centre in Bahrain linked to a facility known as Batelco, according to Iranian state media. The Guards also claimed to have hit a U.S. Navy fuel-supply jetty at Kuwait's Al Ahmadi Port, along with a signals and communications installation operated by American forces in Kuwait, state media added. — Reuters

On Saturday (July 18), the Iranian military announced that it had struck an air base in Bahrain being used by the United States, citing American strikes as the trigger for the retaliatory action, according to Iran's national broadcaster. Attack drones were deployed against hangars and aircraft parking zones, fuel reserves of the U.S. military at Sheikh Isa Air Base, along with multiple connecting bridges across Bahrain, the army said. It further described the southern Bahrain facility as among the most critical operational and supply hubs for the U.S. military in the entire region. — AFP

The Iranian military declared on Saturday (July 18) that it had conducted strikes against U.S. military positions in Kuwait and Jordan as a retaliatory measure against American attacks, as broadcast by Iran's state media. In Kuwait, Iranian forces reportedly struck an ammunition storage facility at the Al-Adiri camp, command structures and weapons depots at the Ali Al-Salem base, and a number of communication bridges. In Jordan, fuel storage tanks at the Al-Azraq base were also hit, the broadcaster reported via Telegram. Kuwait's armed forces posted on X on Saturday (July 18) that blasts might be audible due to air defence batteries engaging and intercepting hostile aerial targets. Bahrain, host to a large American naval installation, also had air raid sirens go off, the country's interior ministry confirmed. — AFP