An Iranian woman walks in front of a missile on display in Tehran. (archive image)Image: keystone
On Monday night, the USA and Iran attacked each other several times again despite a ceasefire in force. An overview of the events.
June 6, 2026, 6:39 a.mJune 6, 2026, 6:39 a.m
What happened?
Despite the ceasefire in force, the USA and Iran have again attacked each other in the Gulf region. The US military said it repelled six ballistic missiles fired by Iran at the US-allied Gulf states of Kuwait and Bahrain. Another projectile missed its target, the US regional command responsible for the Middle East (Centcom) announced on the X platform.
According to its own statements, the US military had previously fended off four Iranian drones in the area of the Strait of Hormuz and then attacked radar positions in Iran on the island of Qeshm and in the town of Goruk.
According to the Iranian news agency Tasnim, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards – the elite armed forces of the Islamic Republic – announced shortly afterwards that they had attacked enemy bases in the region in response to the US attacks. According to the army, Kuwait’s air defense was previously deployed against attacks with missiles and drones. Shortly afterwards there was also a missile alarm in Bahrain in the early morning.
The US military, meanwhile, denied Iranian claims that the US Navy’s Middle East headquarters in Bahrain had been damaged. The information provided by both warring parties could not initially be independently verified.
Iran had previously fired projectiles several times at Kuwait and other Persian Gulf states. The US military maintains bases there that are only a few hundred kilometers away from Iran as the crow flies. Just on Wednesday, a drone hit Kuwait’s international airport. At least one person was killed and dozens more were injured.
Who started?
The leadership in Tehran always speaks of retaliation for attacks by the US military. The USA, in turn, speaks of self-defense in the face of attacks or provocations from Iran.
The Iranian combat drones fended off in the Strait of Hormuz area posed a threat to shipping, Centcom announced last night. The subsequent attacks by the US military on Qeshm and Goruk were carried out to “defend against further attacks”. It initially remained unclear which weapon systems were used.
What is it about?
Shortly after the start of the war, Iran’s armed forces took control of the strait, which is of great importance to the global economy as an export route for fertilizer, oil and liquid gas. The USA, for its part, has imposed a naval blockade to prevent Iran from exporting oil.
There has actually been a ceasefire in the war, which began on February 28th with attacks by the USA and Israel against Iran, for almost two months. However, there have recently been isolated attacks on each other by the warring parties. At the same time, tough negotiations are underway for a framework agreement between the USA and Iran to end the war.
In order to better protect itself against Iranian attacks, Kuwait is buying defense systems against drone attacks from the USA. The US State Department announced that the sale of relevant military equipment worth around two billion US dollars (around 1.7 billion euros) had been approved. It initially remained unclear when the system would be delivered. Arms deals often involve long-term procurement periods.
What does Trump say?
According to US President Donald Trump’s estimate, Iran still has a good fifth of its missile arsenal. Most drone factories, launch pads and missile production facilities have been shut down, he told NBC News. “But they still have capacity. They still have some missiles and some drones.” Trump added: “In percentage terms, I would say maybe 21 to 22 percent of their missiles.” There are still a lot of them, but not what they had at the beginning.
It remained unclear what Trump’s estimate of Iran’s missile arsenal was based on. Recently there have been repeated media reports that, citing US officials or intelligence findings, suggested that Iran still has a large number of its missiles. The New York Times reported in mid-May that Iran still had around 70 percent of its mobile launch pads and around 70 percent of its missile arsenal. The Washington Post had given similar figures.
And what is happening in Israel?
Meanwhile, fighting between the Lebanese Hezbollah militia and Israel continues, although there is actually a ceasefire in the conflict. During the night, sirens blared again in several areas in northern Israel. The Israeli army said on Telegram that a drone had been intercepted. Two more drones fell near the area of operation of Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. There were no injuries.
According to the US State Department, on Thursday night Israel and Lebanon agreed on a new attempt to implement the ceasefire, which has so far had little effect. The Lebanese government is not a party to the war and has limited influence over Hezbollah. However, Iran-backed Hezbollah, which was not involved in the negotiations, rejected the terms. (sda/dpa)