US downs Iranian drones near Strait of Hormuz amid renewed Gulf flare-up

New clashes in the Strait of Hormuz following Iranian attacks on Gulf Arab states, threatening fragile ceasefire.

By World Israel News Staff

US forces shot down two Iranian attack drones that Washington said were threatening commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command announced late Saturday, marking the latest military exchange between the two countries as a fragile ceasefire continues to fray.

“Earlier today, US forces in the Middle East shot down two Iranian one-way attack drones that threatened international maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM said in a statement posted to X.

The command added that “American forces remain postured and ready to continue defending against Iranian aggression.”

The incident came one day after CENTCOM said US forces intercepted a larger Iranian attack involving drones and ballistic missiles aimed at the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf Arab states.

According to the US military, Iran fired seven ballistic missiles toward Kuwait and Bahrain after American forces shot down four Iranian one-way attack drones launched toward the vital shipping corridor.

CENTCOM said six of the seven missiles were intercepted, and the seventh failed to reach its target.

The US military also said there were no reports of harm to American personnel and denied Iranian claims that US Fifth Fleet facilities in Bahrain had been damaged.

Following Friday’s drone launches, US forces struck Iranian coastal surveillance radar sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island, saying the sites were used to support attacks threatening maritime traffic.

The latest drone shootdown underscored the volatility around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints and a key route for global oil and gas shipments.

The US has been enforcing a blockade on ships entering or leaving Iranian ports since April while saying it will not impede vessels transiting the strait to or from non-Iranian ports.

Iran has denounced US actions in the Gulf as violations of the ceasefire and acts of aggression. Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has claimed attacks on US-linked targets and vessels in the region, though Washington has disputed key elements of those claims.

The exchanges in and around the Gulf have added pressure to negotiations already complicated by the US blockade, Iran’s demands for sanctions relief and access to frozen assets, and parallel fighting involving Iranian-backed groups elsewhere in the region.

Gulf states have grown increasingly alarmed by the spillover. Bahrain said Iranian projectiles were fired toward it and Kuwait, while Kuwait and Bahrain activated air defenses during the latest attacks.