Tensions in the Middle East have intensified as United States forces conducted a series of strikes across Iranian territory, including the port city of Bushehr, which serves as the location for the country’s only civilian nuclear power plant. According to state-run news agency IRNA, deputy provincial governor Ehsan Jahanian reported that four points in Bushehr were hit by enemy projectiles at noon.
While there is no immediate confirmation regarding damage to the nuclear facility itself, additional strikes were reported in Abadan, home to the oldest oil refinery in the Middle East, and the port city of Mahshahr, as confirmed by Valiollah Hayati, the deputy governor of Khuzestan province.
Furthermore, Iranian state television reported five explosions west of Bandar Abbas, located near the Strait of Hormuz.
The military escalation has significantly impacted global energy markets, with Brent crude rising above $85 per barrel—the first time since prices eased following the June ceasefire—with both Brent and West Texas Intermediate futures climbing roughly 2.5%. This follows a decision by US Central Command (CENCOM) to reimpose a blockade on Iranian ports starting at 9 pm CET on Tuesday, following an order from Donald Trump.
Trump indicated on Truth Social that the US is taking control of the strait and proposed a 20% levy on the value of all cargo transiting the waterway, stating that any costs incurred by the US in securing the passage would be offset by charging this 20% rate on the total value of all shipments.
The maritime conflict has also drawn in regional neighbors. The UAE, which has been the target of repeated strikes by Tehran since the war began, reported that two vessels were hit by Iranian missiles. The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) separately documented a tanker being hit by a missile 13 nautical miles southeast of Limah on the Omani coast while transiting outbound on the southern route, and another tanker was struck 40 nautical miles northeast of Qalhat on Monday.
In Bahrain, air defense systems intercepted and destroyed several aerial attacks on Tuesday morning, with the government accusing Tehran of targeting civilians. Explosions were heard in the Bahraini capital, Manama, after warning sirens sounded for the third time since dawn. The IRGC confirmed it had carried out missile and drone strikes on the neighboring country.
Inside Iran, the parliament—which had been suspended since the outbreak of war in February and resumed sessions on Monday—began work on a bill titled "Strategic action for the security and sustainable development of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf." Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Parliamentary National Security Committee, confirmed the bill was formally submitted as US drones were being shot down over the region. He noted that further measures were being drafted. Parliament is headed by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who also serves as Iran's chief negotiator in talks with Washington.
A number of MPs have expressed opposition to negotiations with the United States and objected to having had no input in the June memorandum. Brigadier General Akraminia, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya military headquarters, warned Gulf states that cooperating with Washington would be viewed as an act of war, asserting that Iran would under no circumstances allow the US to interfere in managing the strait.
Casualties have been reported from the recent wave of attacks. On Monday, US strikes in Hormozgan province killed members of an environmental ranger's family, including his two sons and daughter-in-law, according to Iranian media. An official in Khuzestan province separately confirmed two deaths and three injuries from the same wave of attacks. Despite the ongoing conflict and the withdrawal of US sanctions waivers, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad stated on Telegram that Iran has exported roughly 80 million barrels of oil over the past 26 days.
He claimed that mechanisms have been put in place over recent years to neutralize the impact of US sanctions and that exports would not face difficulties.
Meanwhile, China has urged both sides to restore safe passage. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated at a press briefing that the swift resumption of normal and safe transit through the strait is a shared demand of the international community and that Beijing would make unremitting efforts to help de-escalate the crisis. Iran's army spokesperson added that reopening the strait depended on respecting the rights of the Iranian nation and that any attempt to reopen it through military pressure was doomed to fail.
