“Al Riqqa” oil tanker (L) and “Al Yarmouk” oil tanker sailing in Arabian Gulf waters off the coast of Kuwait City on June 27, 2026 (Photo: YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)/
Yasser Al Zayat | AFP | Getty Images
Following weekend clashes that threatened to upend peace talks, the United States and Iran agreed on Sunday to end hostilities and allow ships to sail freely through the Strait of Hormuz.
A U.S. official told CNBC on Sunday that “technical discussions will continue on all areas under the memorandum of understanding.” “For the time being, both sides have stopped and ships can sail freely.”
The resumption of talks came after the United States struck Iranian military targets on Sunday in retaliation for Tehran’s recent attacks on ships in the strategic waterway. In response to the Iranian attack, US President Donald Trump on Sunday once again threatened to annihilate Iran.
Iran’s neighbors Kuwait and Bahrain reported incoming missiles and drones overnight.
President Trump wrote on Truth Social: “US aircraft just attacked Iranian missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar facilities in violation of the ceasefire agreement!”
On Saturday, the US military struck a number of targets in Iran after a commercial tanker was reportedly hit by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Central Command announced early Sunday that its warplanes had struck 10 Iranian military targets in and near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for a drone attack on the Panamanian-flagged tanker M/T Kiku. Centcom said late Saturday that the ship was transiting the strait carrying more than 2 million barrels of crude oil.
“The day may come when we will no longer be able to maintain reason and be forced to carry out militarily the work we have successfully begun. Then the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” Trump wrote.
President Trump has repeatedly threatened to return Iran to the “stone age.”
President Trump stoked fears of nuclear war in an April Truth Social post, threatening that “the entire civilization will perish tonight.” “For Iran, the clock is ticking. If we don’t move quickly, there will be nothing left,” Trump said in a May post.
Kuwait and Bahrain come under attack
Iran said it attacked U.S. military targets in Kuwait and Bahrain early Sunday, following U.S. attacks on its coastal facilities.
Kuwait’s military said its air defenses were “facing enemy missile and drone attacks.”
Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned, “Iran’s new invasion of its territory marks a dangerous escalation, once again targeting it with numerous ballistic missiles and drones.”
Bahrain’s statement added: “What the Iranian government is doing is not a one-off act or an isolated incident, but rather a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated attacks.”
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar, which have suffered repeated attacks by Iranian projectiles, condemned Iranian attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait, calling them violations of their sovereignty and international law. Saudi Arabia also condemned Iran’s attack “against the security and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Despite the barrage, Central Command said commercial ships continued to pass through the vital waterway.
Oil prices widened their decline on Friday as more tankers departed from the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns.
International benchmark Brent crude oil futures for August fell 4.34% to end at $71.99 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for August fell 3.74% to end at $69.23 per barrel. The last time WTI futures closed below $70 was on February 27, the day before the start of the Iran war.
Centcom said the US strikes targeted Iran’s “military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense facilities, drone storage facilities, and mine-laying capabilities.”
Escalation during negotiations
The new attack comes as the United States and Iran are in talks to end the war and are set to sign a 60-day ceasefire. However, both sides have accused the other of violating the terms of the agreement.
U.S. forces attacked Iran on Friday after President Trump accused the Islamic Republic of a “stupid violation” of the ceasefire agreement by carrying out drone attacks on ships in the strait.
Iran rammed the Singapore-flagged cargo ship Everlovely in the strait off the coast of Oman on Thursday, the Central Command announced in a post on X. The ship continued to transit the strait, which is a major oil transport artery.
The new attacks come more than a week after President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at creating a permanent peace deal to end the war between the two countries.
— CNBC’s Sarah Ming, Terry Cullen and Dan Mangan contributed to this report
