Ankara / Anatolia

The Iranian army announced early Friday that it targeted with suicide drones the Al-Sakhir airbase in Bahrain, which houses reconnaissance aircraft and helicopters belonging to the US military.

The Iranian army said in a statement that the attack was part of the eleventh wave of operations it is carrying out in response to US attacks.

The statement added: 'In response to the hostile acts targeting civilian infrastructure and innocent people, the Iranian army, hours ago, during the eleventh phase of Operation (Thunderbolt), targeted US Army helicopters and P-8 reconnaissance aircraft located at Al-Sakhir base in Bahrain, with attacks carried out by (Arash) destructive drones.'

The United States has been striking several Iranian areas for days, while Tehran responds by targeting what it says are US targets in the region.

On June 18, Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding that included a ceasefire, and began negotiations mediated by Pakistan and Qatar to end the war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28.

However, US President Donald Trump announced on July 8 that the ceasefire had ended due to renewed escalation, after Iran, a day earlier, attacked three ships while they were transiting the Strait of Hormuz, on the grounds that they did not adhere to the navigation route it had set, prompting Washington to launch attacks on sites inside Iran.

Washington supports the passage of commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz on a route different from that set by Iran, which Tehran rejects, asserting that it targets any ship that does not coordinate with it before crossing the strategic strait for global energy supplies.