Iran launched drone attacks against Bahrain, and a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz was struck by a projectile on June 27 after U.S. forces hit targets in Iran less than a day before, casting a shadow over the ceasefire agreement signed last week by both sides.
Iran has not claimed responsibility for the attack on the ship. Less than a day earlier, however, the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had targeted American positions in the region in retaliation for the June 26 U.S. strikes, which U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had launched in response to Iran attacking a cargo ship the day before.
Threat levels to ships in the Strait of Hormuz were increased on June 27 to “substantial” by the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC), overseen by the U.S. Navy.
That classification followed a report from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center (UKMTO), operated by the British Royal Navy, that a vessel was hit by an “unidentified” projectile. Damage was sustained to the bridge of the ship, according to UKMTO, and no injuries or environmental damage were reported.
“Vessels are advised to transit with caution,” the international maritime center said, adding that authorities are investigating the ship strike.
The JMIC said that passages for inbound and outbound ships near Oman’s shore were expanding.
“Mariners are advised of the existence of mines and should expect naval presence as clearance operations continue,” the JMIC added in its advisory.
Earlier on June 27, Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry released a statement about the “targeting of its territory at dawn” by “a number of Iranian drones.” The ministry accused Iran of blatantly violating Bahrain’s sovereignty, threatening its citizens, and violating international norms that prohibit targeting civilian infrastructure.
“While the Ministry condemns this heinous aggression, it affirms that the Iranian regime’s continued attacks, at a time when regional and international efforts are moving towards de-escalation, place the sole responsibility on Tehran for undermining peace efforts, and reveals an approach based on destabilizing security, exporting chaos, and undermining regional stability,” Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry said.
Peace cannot be achieved through intimidation, and security cannot be reached through aggression, the country added.
“Despite pledging a permanent cessation of military operations and respect for the sovereignty of the region’s states under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding signed on June 17, 2026, [Iran’s] treacherous aggression reveals its disregard for the international community and its own commitments,” Bahrain said.
Since Washington and Tehran signed the memorandum of understanding last week, which included an end to hostilities and open access for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, both sides have launched strikes.
Iranian forces attacked another cargo vessel on June 24, a U.S. official told The Epoch Times. The ship sustained damage to the bridge, and no injuries were reported.
The UKMTO had reported the attack as an “unknown” projectile and did not attribute it to any particular nation.
Following the attack on that vessel, the U.N. International Maritime Organization halted its operation of escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz the next day.
“I have decided to temporarily pause its implementation in order to reconfirm that the necessary safety guarantees continue to be in place for the ships on our evacuation list and all those in the region,” the organization’s secretary-general, Arsenio Dominguez, said. He added that the vessel Iran attacked did not transit under the organization’s evacuation framework.
In statements shared with state-run media, the IRGC previously said that vessels going through the strait must only use routes designated by Iran.
Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority, which was recently established to regulate shipping traffic through the waterway, said: “The consequences arising from passage through unauthorized routes shall be the responsibility of the owner, operator, and vessel commander.”
In response to the attack on the cargo ship, U.S. forces struck missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites within Iran.
“Iran’s dangerous behavior undermined freedom of navigation as commerce increasingly flows through the vital international trade corridor,” CENTCOM said.
President Donald Trump has accused Iran of violating the ceasefire agreement.
Vice President JD Vance said, “Violence will be met with violence.”
“Iran signed a ceasefire agreement,” Vance wrote in a June 26 post on X. “We have honored it. If they have disagreements about how the MOU is being applied, they can pick up the phone.”
