US Strikes Iranian Military Sites After Drone Downing; Kuwait Intercepts Incoming Fire

The United States bombed Iranian radar and drone control sites in Iran on Saturday and Sunday after Tehran shot down an American MQ-1 Predator drone over the weekend, the U.S. military said Monday.

Iran acknowledged launching a retaliatory strike, while Kuwait reported intercepting incoming drone and missile fire early Monday morning. The dueling attacks underscore the fragility of a weekslong ceasefire in the Iran war, which has seen repeated violations even as American and Iranian officials attempt to negotiate a deal to extend the truce and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. military's Central Command said the strikes targeted sites near the city of Geruk and on Qeshm Island.

"The measured and deliberate strikes occurred in response to aggressive Iranian actions that included the shootdown of a U.S. MQ-1 drone that was operating over international waters," Central Command said in a statement.

"U.S. fighter aircraft swiftly responded by eliminating Iranian air defenses, a ground control station, and two one-way attack drones that posed clear threats to ships transiting regional waters." The U.S.

military said no American troops were injured.

Kuwait's air defenses opened fire early Monday to intercept incoming drone and missile fire. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, in a statement carried by the state-run IRNA news agency, said U.S.

forces had targeted a telecommunications tower and that it responded with an attack, likely referring to the fire on Kuwait. Kuwait hosts U.S.

Army Central, the Mideast forward command for the Army.

The attacks represent the latest escalation between the U.S. and Iran, even as both sides insist they are continuing negotiations, particularly over Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

Over the weekend, the U.S. fired a missile into the engine room of a Gambia-flagged cargo ship attempting to break the blockade of Iranian ports.

A trickle of ships has made it out of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of all traded oil and natural gas once passed, but pressure continues on global energy supplies and chemical fertilizer, raising fears of food shortages. The Gulf region produces 30% of globally traded chemical fertilizers.

President Donald Trump met with advisers on Friday but has yet to decide on whether to move ahead with a deal to extend the ceasefire and reopen the strait. Iran has said the deal has not been finalized.

Trump expressed optimism about the talks in a post on his Truth Social platform early Monday in Washington, writing, "Iran really wants to make a deal, and it will be a good one for the U.S.A. and those that are with us.

Just sit back and relax, it will all work out well in the end — It always does!"

Meanwhile, fighting has escalated between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, despite their nominal ceasefire. Israel has extended its occupation deep into Lebanon, and Hezbollah continues to launch drones into Israel.