Escalating Gulf Tensions
Iran retaliates against US strikes, escalating Persian Gulf tensions; online child safety push grows.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard launched drone and missile strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait early June 28, escalating a conflict that began when a U.S.-Iran ceasefire collapsed. The attacks came hours after President Trump authorized retaliatory U.S. airstrikes on Iranian targets, following an Iranian drone strike on the *Kiku*, a tanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude oil near the Strait of Hormuz, according to Associated Press.
Iran's government quickly threatened to walk away from the Versailles Agreement — a ceasefire deal signed June 17 — if U.S. strikes continue. Trump fired back on Truth Social, warning that "the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist" if Iran breaks the deal, NPR Illinois reported.
IRGC Strikes Bahrain and Kuwait Before Dawn
Between 3:30 and 3:45 AM ET on June 28, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired a coordinated wave of drones and missiles at two U.S. Gulf allies, according to Military.com. Kuwait's military said it intercepted two ballistic missiles. Bahrain reported a strike on an 8-story residential building near its international airport.
Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, making it a high-stakes target. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned in Baghdad that any attempt to create separate shipping routes around the Strait of Hormuz will "increase the level of tension" and lead to further "confrontation," Military.com reported.
A Ceasefire Deal Already Showing Deep Cracks
The Versailles Agreement was signed just 11 days before the latest strikes. It created an interim ceasefire after U.S. and Israeli strikes in February 2026 killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, took power and has held a hard line throughout talks, according to the Global Conflict Tracker.
Gulf leaders are not confident the deal will hold. Secretary of State Marco Rubio admitted after a recent GCC meeting that Gulf allies have "concrete concerns" that the agreement does nothing to stop Iranian proxy groups, The Guardian reported. Analysts at the Atlantic Council called the MoU "a crisis deferred," saying it leaves the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear program unresolved.
Trump Presses Syria on Hezbollah, Alarming Lebanon and Israel
Trump has pushed Syria's new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, to take on Hezbollah in Lebanon. The White House has grown frustrated with Israel's military campaign there. Trump criticized Israel for "knocking down an apartment house every time you look for somebody," according to The Guardian.
Al-Sharaa flatly rejected the idea. He said reports of Syrian troops entering Lebanon to fight Hezbollah are "completely untrue" and that the crisis "cannot be solved through war," WION reported. Only 18% of Israelis support the current U.S.-Iran deal, with many feeling the U.S. settled for too little by not targeting Iran's nuclear program, the Atlantic Council found.
Congress Pushes Child Safety Laws as Meta Faces $6M Verdict
Away from the Gulf crisis, a bipartisan push to protect children online is gaining ground in Washington. A deal between Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) is expected to advance a revised Kids Online Safety Act this year, according to AboutLawsuits. More than 2,500 lawsuits are pending against Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snap over harm to minors.
Courts are already acting. A Los Angeles jury upheld a $6 million verdict — $3 million in damages, $3 million in punishment — against Meta and Google in the *K.G.M.* case, the Social Media Victims Law Center reported. Meta is lobbying to strip the bill of a "duty of care" clause, which Sen. Marsha Blackburn says would let Big Tech "maintain the status quo."
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