The United States and Iran traded a series of military strikes on Thursday as thousands of mourners gathered for the burial of Iran’s late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The escalation comes amid a “dramatic” drop in maritime traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz, with shipping levels falling well below normal figures, reports BBC.
Ayatollah Khamenei, who was killed on 28 February during initial US and Israeli strikes, was laid to rest at the Imam Reza Shrine in his eastern home city of Mashhad following six days of funeral rites.
His son and reported successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, was notably absent from the public ceremony, having not been seen since he was seriously wounded in the attack that killed his father.
Crowds at the shrine carried Iranian flags and signs issued with death threats against US President Donald Trump.
US Central Command (Centcom) confirmed it struck 90 Iranian military targets, including air defence systems and logistics infrastructure along the coastline. Centcom stated the offensive aimed to “further degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping”.
Iranian state media reported that strikes hit targets near the Bushehr nuclear power plant and a Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) barracks. Damage was also reported at a marine control tower in the port of Chabahar and to infrastructure, including bridges and a railway route connecting Tehran to Mashhad.
In response, Tehran launched strikes against US assets in Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar, later extending attacks to sites in Jordan and Iraq. Explosions were reported in the Bahraini capital, Manama, while Kuwait reported intercepting missiles and drones.
Iran’s health ministry stated that 14 people have been killed and 78 injured across five provinces over the past two days.
The recent hostilities mark the most severe exchange since a 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed on 17 June. President Trump declared on Wednesday that the ceasefire agreement is now “over,” describing further negotiations as a “waste of time”.
“I just don’t know if they’re worthy of making a deal,” Trump told reporters, referring to the Iranian leadership as “scum”. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded on social media, stating, “We do not answer vulgarity with vulgarity, but with action: fearlessly and with great valour”.
Meanwhile, parliamentary speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that the Strait of Hormuz would only remain open under Iranian arrangements, asserting that American “bullying” is no longer cost-free.
The conflict has severely impacted regional trade. Phil Belcher, marine director at Intertanko, reported that the number of ships using the southern route through the Strait of Hormuz has plummeted to “single figures”.
Daily traffic has dropped to approximately 30 ships, down from 70 a week ago, and a significant decline from the 130 ships typically seen before the conflict began earlier this year.
Industry experts noted that the “exuberance of optimism” following last month’s MoU has been replaced by a cycle of violence affecting both business and seafarer safety.
