Iran strikes US bases in Bahrain and Jordan as ceasefire frays

A Syrian farmer looks at an Iranian missile that fell into an agricultural land in the area of Najha, in the countryside of the Syrian capital after being intercepted by Israeli air defense systems on June 8, 2026. Iraq and Syria closed their airspace as a safety precaution on June 7 after their eastern neighbour Iran launched missiles across their territory towards targets in Israel. In a brief statement, the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority reported the closure of Iraqi airspace for 72 hours.

Syria’s authority closed the country’s “southern air corridors” for 12 hours. Iran attacked American bases in Jordan and Bahrain on Wednesday, warning its Gulf neighbours that they had a “responsibility” to stop the United States and Israel from using their territory to strike the Islamic republic. The strikes came after the US carried out attacks on Iran in response to the downing of an American helicopter, straining a ceasefire that took effect in April.

The exchange drew international calls for restraint on the eve of the World Cup, which the US is co-hosting and Iran is participating in. It has also cast doubt on US President Donald Trump’s claim that negotiations on an enduring settlement to end the Middle East war were in their “final throes”. The conflict, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, threw the region into chaos and rattled global markets before the shaky truce began.

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Iranian forces also fired “long-range missiles” at US targets in Jordan, the Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday. Jordan’s military said it shot down five missiles, with no casualties or material damage, while Bahrain said it intercepted and destroyed “a number of Iranian aerial attacks”. Elsewhere, the Kuwaiti military said its air defences were engaging “hostile aerial targets”.

Iran has recently carried out deadly attacks there too. Iran’s foreign ministry “reiterated the legal and moral responsibility of all countries in the region (especially those located along the southern shores of the Persian Gulf) to prevent the US military and Israel from using their territory or facilities to plan, organise, execute, or support hostile actions against Iran”. The developments came after the US military said it had “completed” what Trump portrayed as a retaliatory assault on Iran over the downing of an Apache attack helicopter.

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