Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it destroyed a U.S. early warning radar in Bahrain, the first such claim in months. The Guard also said a tanker struck a mine while trying to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, causing an explosion.
Neither claim could be independently verified.
Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Friday. Read our full coverage here.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claims strike on US radar in Bahrain
A report by Iran’s official IRNA news agency quoted a statement by the Guard as saying the attack on the U.S. radar system followed a U.S. strike on a telecommunications pole in the southern Iranian port of Sirik.
Bahrain has been one of the strongest critics of Iran and is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
The statement said the attack on the radar was a serious warning to the U.S. to cease its strikes. It was the first report by Iran on targeting a facility in Bahrain since September.
During an air war that began in February, Iran targeted U.S. bases in neighboring Arab nations including Bahrain in retaliation for U.S. strikes. Since then, Iran routinely targets oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the critical waterway for international oil shipments.
U.S. Central Command and Bahrain’s Ministry of Information did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Iran says a tanker struck a mine in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Friday that a liquefied petroleum gas tanker struck a mine, causing an explosion, while trying to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, according to state-run IRNA news agency.
The Guard said the vessel ignored repeated warnings while transiting the eastern part of the strait. The claim could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate report of the incident from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British military agency that monitors incidents at sea.
Iran continues to warn ships not to pass through the strategic shipping lane without its approval.
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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.
