The United States attacked Iran for the sixth night in a row on July 17, 2026. The US military command for the Middle East, known as CENTCOM, said it finished its latest round of strikes at 01:40 GMT on Friday. The attacks hit roads, bridges, and power lines in southern Iran. In response, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — a powerful branch of Iran's military often called the IRGC — launched its 13th round of strikes back at US military bases spread across at least five countries.

Iran's Fars news agency said US forces struck at least six bridges, a railway station, and other sites. All six bridges were in Hormozgan province, on Iran's southern coast along the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow strip of water between Iran and Oman where about a fifth of the world's oil passes through. The bridges included the Gariveh bridge, a bridge near Latidan, two bridges on the Kahoorestan-Lar route, a partially built bridge connecting Bandar e-Khamir, Keshar, and Bandar Abbas, and a bridge in the village of Maru. Iran's Ministry of Energy said the attacks damaged power lines in Bandar Abbas and nearby villages, causing blackouts across southern Iran. Iran said at least eight people were killed in the overnight attacks. According to AFP, Iran has said 38 people have been killed and more than 400 injured in US attacks since the June 22 talks in Switzerland. Al Jazeera

CENTCOM put out a press release on July 16 about the new strikes in Iran. This fits a pattern of growing attacks that started earlier in the month. The command struck over 80 targets with precise weapons on July 7, about 90 targets across July 7 and 8, and roughly 140 targets using fighter jets and drones in a later wave. A July 12 press release described strikes using aircraft and cruise missiles. CENTCOM The July 15 strikes were aimed at weakening Iran's ability to target ships, and CENTCOM said on its official X account that the strikes are targeting Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels travelling through the Strait of Hormuz. CNN The US military has also said it hit Iranian air defences and coastal radars during the campaign. Reuters

Iran's IRGC struck back at US bases across a wide area stretching from the Gulf to Syria. In Qatar, at least one missile was shot down by Qatari air defences; Qatar's Ministry of Interior said one child was hurt by falling debris during the interceptions over Doha. Air raid sirens went off in Bahrain, where the Ministry of Interior told people to stay calm. The IRGC said it hit a US military base in Kuwait, striking a missile defence radar, several weapons storage sites, and two HIMARS launchers (HIMARS are truck-mounted rocket systems), according to Iran's Mehr news agency. The Jordanian army said it shot down three Iranian missiles heading for Jordan on July 17, with no one killed or hurt. The IRGC also said it destroyed a US air control radar in Oman's Ghanim region and a maritime control radar on rocks in the Strait of Hormuz. In Syria, the IRGC said it attacked a US special operations command centre at the al-Tanf military base, according to Tasnim news agency. The IRGC said the al-Tanf strike was in response to the killing of Iranian soldiers in Iranshahr. Al Jazeera

The fighting at sea is getting worse. A tanker ship was hit by an unknown projectile about 19 nautical miles east of Khasab, Oman, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency. Iranian military spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari commented on the situation around the Strait of Hormuz, though the specific content of his remarks was not detailed in available reporting.

The current wave of fighting goes back to early July. Three tanker ships were hit in the Strait of Hormuz area around July 7, 2026, which triggered the first US strikes on Iran. AP News On July 9, the US launched new airstrikes and Iran responded by targeting Gulf countries. AP News On July 12, Iran fired missiles and drones at US facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar, Oman, and the UAE. The Guardian President Donald Trump announced on July 13 that Washington was "reinstating" a blockade on Iran — meaning US forces would stop ships from entering or leaving Iranian ports. AP News The US military reimposed the blockade on Iranian ports in response to Iran's attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as reported on July 14. AP News

The broader context here goes back further than July. In late March 2026, an Iranian attack on a facility injured US service members. US State Department In May 2026, the US State Department announced actions to disrupt Iran's overseas military supply networks, targeting companies based in China for their support to Iran. US State Department The US had previously conducted an airstrike on Iran's Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant — a facility where Iran processes material that could be used for nuclear fuel. The US described the strike as "historically successful" and "15 years in the making," using 30,000-pound bombs designed to punch deep into the ground before exploding. US Defense Department

What makes this phase different is that both sides are now hitting a wider range of targets and pulling more countries into the fight. The US has moved beyond hitting only military sites — the six destroyed bridges and damaged power lines in Hormozgan province suggest a shift toward infrastructure that both civilians and the military use, in a region central to Iran's trade and naval power. The IRGC's reported strikes on US radar systems in Oman and the Strait of Hormuz, along with the tanker hit near Khasab, point to an active struggle for control of one of the world's most important oil shipping routes. With Iran's retaliation now reaching Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Syria, and the UAE in a single night, the conflict is drawing in a growing number of countries — each with its own defences and its own limits on how far it is willing to go.