Hostilities flare up again in Iran war; oil jumps with talks at a stalemate

DUBAI/WASHINGTON – Gulf hostilities flared again on June 3, with an Iranian missile attack damaging Kuwait’s airport and the US military carrying out strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, as diplomacy between Washington and Tehran showed little progress.

The latest flare-up, which lifted oil prices by more than 1 per cent in early trade on June 3, comes more than three months after the initial US and Israeli strikes on Iran, with the conflict mired in a stalemate under a shaky ceasefire and the Strait of Hormuz largely closed to maritime traffic.

Flights at Kuwait International Airport were suspended and diverted elsewhere until further notice, the state news agency said, citing aviation authorities, after an Iranian drone and missile attack on its T1 building.

The attack caused injuries and severely damaged some airport facilities, it added, but gave no further details. Kuwait Airways said it suspended operations after the attack.

Bahrain’s army intercepted three missiles and several drones, it said in a statement.

Earlier, the US Central Command said two Iranian missiles shot at Kuwait fell short or broke apart in flight, while several ballistic missiles aimed at regional targets failed, and three missiles heading for Bahrain were intercepted.

Since the conflict began in late February, Iran has repeatedly attacked targets in Bahrain and Kuwait, where US military bases are located.

Central Command said US forces also downed Iranian drones targeting civilian shipping in regional waters and carried out strikes on Qeshm Island near the Strait of Hormuz following attempted attacks by Iran.

Iran’s state media said the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, as well as an airbase and helicopters in an unspecified regional country.

It sent missiles and drones in response to what the IRGC described as a US attack on a communications tower south of Qeshm.

Central Command said all the attacks failed and that US forces remained ready to repel “unwarranted Iranian aggression”.

Iran and the US said last week that they had reached a tentative initial agreement to halt the war.

But the two sides have yet to sign off on the deal.

Iranian media reported that Tehran has not communicated with Washington for several days, but US President Donald Trump said negotiations have not stopped.

“The conversations between us have been going on continuously, including four days ago, three days ago, two days ago, one day ago, and today,” he said in a social media post.

Discussions on nuclear programme

Since mid-March, Trump has repeatedly said he is close to a deal that would end the fighting and allow negotiators to tackle thorny issues, including the future of Iran’s nuclear programme.

Trump has said that stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is his top priority.

Iran denies it is developing a nuclear bomb and says its atomic programme is for peaceful purposes.

Tehran is seeking access to billions of dollars in oil revenues, waivers on crude exports, a lifting of a US blockade on its ports, and continued leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, which handled a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas traffic before the war.

Iranian media said the IRGC’s navy targeted a vessel it identified as “Panaya” with missiles in response to what it said was a US attack on an Iranian tanker near Hormuz.

“Disrupting the security of the Strait of Hormuz will carry a heavy price for the US military,” Iranian media cited the IRGC as saying.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers on June 2 that the US would agree to sanctions relief only if Iran agrees to give up its nuclear activity.

Rubio declared “the war is over” during a sharp exchange with Democratic Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, who disagreed.

Israel keeps up strikes in Lebanon

The war that began on Feb 28 has killed thousands of people, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, while also causing global economic pain ⁠by pushing up energy prices.

It also triggered the latest round of conflict between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, with Israel pursuing its deepest incursion into Lebanon in 25 years.

On June 2, Israel kept up strikes on a string of towns in southern Lebanon, Lebanese security sources said, despite a US-mediated partial ceasefire announced on June 1.

The announcement failed to reassure many Lebanese, 1.2 million of whom have been displaced, and an Israeli drone over Beirut kept residents on edge on June 2.

“Every time we return to our homes, there is a warning for us to be displaced again,” said Faten Al Chehime, who fled to a displacement camp from her home in Beirut’s southern suburbs on June 1, only two weeks after returning there.

At sea, the world’s largest shipping group MSC said on June 2 that one of its vessels was struck by two projectiles while at Iraq’s Umm Qasr port on the previous day.

The IRGC said it carried out the attack in retaliation for a US attack on an Iranian vessel in the Gulf of Oman.

The wide-reaching impact of the crisis was laid bare by UN children’s agency UNICEF, which said surging transport costs and supply chain disruptions were hindering life-saving aid for Gaza, Lebanon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, Nigeria and elsewhere. REUTERS