Iran says it struck US air base in Bahrain with suicide drones

Iran's army said it struck the US military's Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain with "Arash" loitering munition drones in the early hours of Friday, July 17, marking the 11th phase of what Tehran calls "Operation Saegheh" — or "Lightning Operation" — in retaliation for recent American strikes on Iranian coastal cities and infrastructure.aa+2

The Attack

Iran's army public relations department said the operation targeted helicopter maintenance facilities and a hangar housing a US P-8 reconnaissance aircraft at the base, according to Anadolu Agency. The statement described the drones as "Arash" suicide munitions and said the strikes were a direct response to US attacks on Iranian urban infrastructure that caused civilian casualties. Air raid sirens were activated in Bahrain following the Iranian claims, Fox News ↘ 0.63% reported.binance+2

Iranian state media separately reported that drones struck oil refineries and US military positions in Bahrain, including the BAPCO refinery, citing unnamed Arab sources, according to Turkey's Turkiye Today. Iran's Revolutionary Guards also claimed to have targeted American facilities in Kuwait and radar installations in Oman as part of the same wave of operations.turkiyetoday+1

Escalating Conflict

The attack is the latest in a weeks-long cycle of tit-for-tat strikes between Washington and Tehran. On July 7-8, US Central Command said it struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, missile and drone storage sites, and naval capabilities along Iran's coastline to degrade Iran's ability to threaten shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. On July 14, President Donald Trump reimposed a naval blockade on all Iranian ports and threatened to hit power plants and bridges unless Tehran resumes negotiations, Reuters Thomson Reuters Corporation ↗ 2.92% reported.centcom+1

Iran has responded with repeated drone and missile attacks on US bases across the region. Earlier phases of Operation Lightning targeted Jordan's Azraq Airbase and other US facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain.reuters+1

Market Impact

The sustained escalation has rattled energy markets. Oil prices have climbed steadily since the US resumed strikes in early July, with Brent crude rising more than 4 percent early in the week as concerns mounted over disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20 percent of the world's oil transits, Al Jazeera reported. The US military said it disabled an oil tanker heading for Iran's Kharg Island as part of the reimposed blockade.cnn+2