Iran says its armed forces strike U.S. military infrastructure in several Gulf and neighboring states, days after the United States carries out strikes on Iran’s southern coastal and eastern provinces. Iranian officials and state-linked reporting describe the Gulf attacks as retaliation, while the U.S. says its actions are intended to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. Some reports also cite U.S. statements that Iranian forces have struck tankers in the area, contributing to the renewed exchange. The renewed military activity occurs as a three-week-old ceasefire is put under further strain, according to Reuters-linked reporting in multiple outlets.
Separately, Iran is holding funerary rites for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who Iranian media and other reports say was killed in a U.S. airstrike on the first day of the wider war on February 28. Multiple outlets describe a week of mass processions and rallies leading to his burial at the country’s holiest shrine in Mashhad. Reporting also says Iranian air force assets are being used to secure the skies over the funeral procession.
Markets briefly react to the flare-up, with some reports noting oil prices spike and then ease as investors assess whether the confrontation is temporary or threatens a ceasefire collapse.
