Iran claims attack on US Fifth Fleet as Bahrain urges residents to shelter

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it launched a drone attack targeting the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain early Wednesday, following American strikes on Iranian sites in the Gulf region.

According to a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim News Agency, “IRGC Navy forces launched a drone attack at 2:30 a.m. against the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.”

The IRGC said the operation was carried out in response to US strikes on Jask, Sirik and Qeshm in southern Iran.

Iranian state-linked media outlets reported that the American attacks damaged a communications tower in Sirik and destroyed two water reservoirs in the Bamani district.

Shortly after the IRGC statement, sirens sounded across Bahrain and the country’s Ministry of Interior urged residents to remain calm and seek shelter.

“The siren has been sounded. Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place,” the ministry said in a post on X.

There were initially no reports of air raid sirens or confirmed damage in Bahrain following the claimed Iranian strike.

The developments mark a sharp escalation in tensions between Iran and the United States after Washington launched what it described as retaliatory strikes following the downing of a US Army helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz.

The US has not yet publicly responded to Iran’s latest claims.