Istanbul / Anadolu

For the fourth time on Tuesday, sirens sounded across Bahrain, as authorities called on citizens and residents to head to the nearest safe shelter.

This repeated wave of warnings comes amid unprecedented security tensions in the Gulf region.

The Bahraini Interior Ministry said in a statement: "The siren has been activated. We ask citizens and residents to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place, and follow news via official channels," without providing additional details.

According to Anadolu's monitoring of official data, this is the fourth time Bahrain has sounded sirens since dawn on Tuesday, amid being subjected to aerial attacks.

The ministry did not specify the nature of the danger necessitating the alert, but Bahrain and other Arab countries have been subjected in recent days to Iranian attacks, which Tehran said targeted US military facilities and bases in the region.

Iran says its attacks are in response to strikes by the United States against it, under the pretext of retaliating for targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Tensions around the strait escalated after Iran warned ships against crossing through routes not approved by it or without prior coordination, while several commercial ships have been targeted in recent days.

On Saturday, Oman and Iran agreed to continue technical and political discussions on ensuring safe and free navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, amid reports of an Omani proposal to regulate ship passage through separate lane arrangements.

Washington also demanded that Tehran provide a public commitment to stop targeting ships and allow safe passage in the strait.

The region is witnessing renewed military escalation after US President Donald Trump announced on July 8 that he was ending the ceasefire that Washington and Tehran had reached last June through Qatari and Pakistani mediation.

These successive alerts reflect the state of maximum alert in Bahrain, coinciding with escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. Attention is turning to the diplomatic efforts by Oman and Pakistan to calm the situation, but the continuation of Iranian attacks threatens to hinder those efforts.