Gulf States in June 2026: the most important developments in security
Gulf security in June 2026 was shaped by repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks on Kuwait and Bahrain, in the fourth month of the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and amid strikes between the United States and Iran. On June 3 Iranian attacks hit Kuwait International Airport and a US base in Bahrain; one person was killed and at least 63 were injured. Kuwait expelled two Iranian diplomats. Iran denied responsibility and pointed to a malfunctioning US Patriot missile, which the US rejected. Further Iranian strikes on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain followed on June 6 and 7, and on June 10, when Jordan was also targeted. The US struck Iranian radar sites and other positions. Saudi Arabia and Bahrain added Iran's Revolutionary Guards to their terror lists, and the US approved a $2 billion sale of counter-drone systems to Kuwait.
At sea, a US strike hit a tanker off Oman around June 10 and 11, killing between two and three Indian seafarers; India protested and summoned the US envoy. Iran announced the closure of the Strait on June 20, although ships kept passing through, and Oman opened a temporary corridor. On June 25 a ship was hit by an unidentified projectile and the UN halted ship evacuations after an attack in the Gulf of Oman; more than 100 vessels had been evacuated by June 27.
The fighting widened again at the end of the month. On June 27 Bahrain said Iranian drones attacked its territory, and Iran struck an oil tanker in the Strait; Egypt and Saudi Arabia condemned the attacks. On June 28, after US airstrikes on 10 targets in Iran, Iran fired drones and missiles at Kuwait and Bahrain, whose air defenses said they intercepted them. Iran threatened to halt the negotiations.
An explosion at Qatar's Ras Laffan industrial zone on June 21 left more than 50 people wounded and 18 missing. Israel struck Qatar on June 4, killing five.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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