THE MIND OF THE PEOPLE – Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy or IRGC has threatened to attack United States (US) bases in the Middle East if Iranian tankers are attacked again, according to Iranian media reports on Saturday (9/5/2026).
This threat came a day after a US fighter jet fired on and disabled two Iranian-flagged tankers in the Gulf of Oman that Washington accused of challenging Iran’s port blockade.
“Any attack on Iranian oil tankers and commercial vessels will be met with a major attack on any of the American bases in the region and enemy ships,” the IRGC quoted The Guardian as saying.
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Meanwhile, an IRGC commander confirmed that IRGC missiles and drones had locked on US targets in the area while waiting for orders to fire.
An Iranian military official previously told local media that the Iranian navy had responded to Washington’s attack on the two tankers with a retaliatory attack.
Even so, US President Donald Trump still stated that the ceasefire was still in effect. Earlier, he said his forces had inflicted “major damage” on Iranian targets after three US Navy destroyers came under missiles, drones and small boats as they passed through the Strait of Hormuz.
“Three world-class American destroyers just crossed the Strait of Hormuz very successfully, under fire. There was no damage to all three ships,” Trump said on social media.
Amid the escalation, Washington is still waiting for Tehran’s response to the latest US proposal for a peace deal. Trump on Friday (8/5/2026) said he expected Iran’s answer “this very evening”, but there was no public sign that Tehran had sent a response to Pakistani mediators.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is claimed to have questioned the reliability of US leadership. “The recent escalation of tensions of American forces in the Persian Gulf and their various actions in violation of the ceasefire have raised suspicions about the American side’s motivation and seriousness in pursuing diplomacy,” he told his Turkish counterpart.
On the other hand, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday met the leader of Qatar, Washington’s key intermediary in dialogue with Iran, discussing “continued close coordination to counter threats and promote stability and security across the Middle East”.
Qatari leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani a day earlier also met Vice President JD Vance to discuss Pakistan’s efforts to broker permanent peace.
On Sunday morning Britain’s maritime operations center UKMTO reported a ship was hit by an unknown projectile and caught fire about 43 kilometers north-east of Qatar’s capital, Doha. It is claimed that the small fire on the bulk carrier ship was successfully extinguished.
Satellite imagery meanwhile showed a suspected widespread oil spill off the coast of Kharg Island, Tehran’s main oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf far north of the Strait of Hormuz.
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Global monitoring agency Orbital EOS said the spill appeared to cover more than 52 square kilometers. The UK-based non-profit Conflict and Environment Observatory said on Saturday that the spill had been “much reduced” and was probably caused by a leak in oil infrastructure.
On the Lebanese front, a parallel ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah is also under pressure. At least nine people were claimed to have been killed in Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon on Saturday.
Hezbollah said it launched drone attacks on Israeli forces in northern Israel in response. The Israeli military said several drones entered Israeli territory, with one reservist seriously injured and two others moderately injured.***
