The United States has announced a global campaign against what it described as transnational left-wing extremism, even as its military confrontation with Iran intensified across the Gulf, with fresh attacks on critical infrastructure in Kuwait and Bahrain by Tehran.
This is just as Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, vowed to teach the US “unforgettable lessons” as renewed hostilities flared, saying Washington’s attacks, despite a framework deal to end the war, showed President Donald Trump’s signature to be worthless.
Meanwhile, two US service members were killed, and one went missing in action in Jordan following a barrage of missile and drone strikes from Iran, the Pentagon said on Saturday.
Washington on Saturday carried out a seventh consecutive night of strikes inside Iran.
At the same time, Tehran responded by attacking critical infrastructure in Kuwait and targeting facilities linked to the US military in Bahrain.
Speaking at an international counterterrorism summit in Washington attended by representatives from more than 60 countries across Europe, Asia and Latin America, the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio argued that Western governments had failed to recognise the threat posed by violent left-wing movements.
“Our counterterrorism doctrine has had a blind spot when it comes to extremist violence from the political left. Even today, the very idea that far-left terrorism could be a serious threat is treated as a right-wing fever dream,” Rubio declared.
According to him, the United States intends to work closely with international partners to identify, disrupt and dismantle organisations involved in politically motivated violence regardless of where they operate.
White House Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Miller, delivered one of the administration’s strongest criticisms yet of left-wing political movements, accusing violent extremists of manipulating democratic values to shield themselves from prosecution.
“One of the hallmarks of left-wing violence and terrorism is its completely pretextual and disingenuous appeal to civil liberties in an effort to shield its own violence,” Miller said.
“When the leftist, who does not believe in freedom, who does not believe in civil rights, who does not believe in any ordinary notion of justice, protests that we are violating his rights, understand that he is lying to try to persuade people who are not closely following the political scene that some injustice has been perpetrated against him,” Miller said.
In the Gulf, the US military confirmed that it had conducted strikes inside Iran for a seventh consecutive night, targeting areas near the Persian Gulf and the strategic Strait of Hormuz as well as transportation infrastructure further inland.
Iranian authorities accused Washington of expanding its campaign beyond military objectives to include airports, railway stations, bridges, telecommunications infrastructure and energy facilities.
Iranian supreme leader Khamenei vowed to teach the US “unforgettable lessons”.
“Now that the American enemy seeks to incite war and bear its most serious consequences, it should know that the dear Iranian nation and the axis of resistance have unforgettable lessons to offer it,” he said, in a statement carried by state TV, adding that US violations of the deal “once again demonstrated to everyone the worthlessness of the American president’s signature.”
Authorities said 116 communications towers had been knocked out, leaving landline, mobile phone and internet services unavailable in several communities.
In neighbouring Khuzestan province, Iranian officials claimed that US forces had attacked 95 locations across 12 cities during the past 10 days.
Tehran responded by expanding its own military operations beyond direct attacks on US-linked assets.
Kuwait announced on Saturday (Saturday) that Iranian missiles and drones had struck another electricity generation and water desalination plant, triggering a fire that forced several generating units to shut down.
In a statement, Kuwait’s Ministry of Electricity and Water said, “Another electricity and water distillation plant was targeted by a hostile attack that led to a fire erupting in one of the plant’s components.”
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation also confirmed that a strategic oil facility suffered significant damage following repeated Iranian attacks, although authorities said workers had been safely evacuated.
Elsewhere in Kuwait, authorities temporarily suspended operations at Kuwait International Airport after rocket and drone attacks forced air traffic controllers to halt flights.
Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry said the government reserved the right “to take all necessary measures” to defend the country against further attacks.
The conflict also spread into Bahrain, where the kingdom’s military said its air defence systems intercepted and destroyed multiple Iranian drones and missiles. According to Bahrain’s Interior Ministry, air raid sirens sounded five times after dawn as residents were instructed to seek shelter.
Jordan also reported intercepting multiple missiles allegedly aimed at military facilities, with officials saying no casualties or significant damage had been recorded.
Escalating Tehran’s rhetoric further, senior military adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Major General Mohsen Rezaei, warned that Iran would abandon its policy of proportionate retaliation if US attacks continued.
“Iran will no longer limit itself to retaliatory, like-for-like responses… and no political border will be safe,” Rezaei said. He added that Tehran would resume “full-scale offensive operations” should American military operations continue for another two or three days.
The diplomatic situation also deteriorated sharply after Iran formally suspended its commitments under the memorandum of understanding reached with Washington barely one month ago. The agreement had temporarily halted weeks of fighting and opened the door to negotiations mediated by Qatar and Pakistan.
However, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Khazem Gharibabadi accused Washington of violating the agreement through continued military action. “We were in negotiations. Unfortunately, it was the Americans themselves who, in fact, took these aggressive actions, in violation of their own commitments,” Gharibabadi said.
“As a result, we have suspended all of our commitments and are, in fact, no longer implementing them.
“What we are now faced with is defending our country. We will do so firmly and decisively, and I think the Americans have once again received their response, that these aggressive actions by them will get them nowhere.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei similarly ruled out an immediate return to diplomacy.
“We currently have no plans for negotiations and remain focused on defending the country,” he said earlier in the week.
In a separate development, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun left Beirut for Washington on Saturday, where he was expected to meet President Donald Trump, the Lebanese presidency said, after talks between Lebanon and Israel wrapped up in Italy.
It will be the first trip to Washington by a Lebanese head of state since Michel Sleiman was received by Barack Obama in 2009.
Aoun will hold discussions “with several American officials on the situation in Lebanon and ways to strengthen the ceasefire”, particularly in Lebanon’s south, as well as on “the withdrawal of Israel from the Lebanese regions it occupies”, the presidency said.
Israel and Lebanon began US-sponsored negotiations in April aimed at reaching a peace deal and permanently ending the Israel-Hezbollah war.
On June 26, they reached a framework agreement in Washington under which the Israeli military is to withdraw from southern Lebanon and the Lebanese army is to deploy, starting with two “pilot zones”.
The agreement is contingent on the disarmament of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, which has flatly rejected the deal and the Israel-Lebanon negotiations.
on Saturday, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported fresh airstrikes against two towns located on the edge of the so-called security zone, in the Tyre and Nabatieh regions. The US embassy meanwhile warned Americans not to travel to Lebanon, citing “high tensions in the Middle East”.
Two US Soldiers Killed, One Missing after Iran Strikes on Jordan
Two US service members were killed, and one went missing in action in Jordan following a barrage of missile and drone strikes from Iran.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the soldiers were killed Friday when US and partner forces “defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks.”
One US service member is missing in action, while four others have been evacuated to Jordanian hospitals, CENTCOM said in a post on X.
Sunday Ehigiator
