{"text":[[{"start":9.3,"text":"US forces intercepted Iranian missiles and drones fired at Bahrain and Kuwait, and conducted strikes on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz in response to what Washington described as “attempted attacks by Tehran across the Middle East”."}],[{"start":23.9,"text":"US Central Command, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, said Iran had launched “several” ballistic missiles but US forces had “successfully defeated multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones”."}],[{"start":38,"text":"It later added that an “additional wave” of Iranian drones was fired at US forces in Kuwait, but that none had hit their targets and “multiple drones” were shot down by US forces."}],[{"start":49.15,"text":"The latest strikes are the first time that Bahrain, where US naval operations in the Middle East are based, has been attacked since the days following a ceasefire agreed in early April. Kuwait, which also has a significant US force presence, has been targeted several times by Iranian fire, including on Sunday."}],[{"start":65.3,"text":"Centcom said the Iranian missiles — including two fired at Kuwait and three launched at Bahrain — had “failed to hit their intended targets”. The US military said missiles headed towards Kuwait “fell short or broke apart en route”, while US and Bahraini air defences intercepted the attempted strikes on the island."}],[{"start":82.65,"text":"Centcom also said US forces shot down three attack drones that Iran launched towards civilian vessels, and conducted what the US military described as “self-defence strikes” on an Iranian military facility on Qeshm Island in the strait."}],[{"start":97.15,"text":"Centcom said US forces remained “vigilant and ready to defend against unwarranted Iranian aggression during the ongoing ceasefire”. "}],[{"start":105.45,"text":"Oil prices rose slightly on the news. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was up 0.8 per cent at nearly $97 a barrel in Asian trade. "}],[{"start":115.35000000000001,"text":"Iranian state media reported the Revolutionary Guards had attacked the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain with missiles and drones. Iranian state media said the Guards had launched the attack in response to the US military targeting a communications tower on Qeshm Island."}],[{"start":132.4,"text":"Centcom denied a US military facility had been hit, saying that any suggestion Iran had struck the US Fifth Fleet headquarters and a US air base in the region was “false”. Iranian drones successfully targeted the US naval base in Bahrain earlier in the war."}],[{"start":147.85,"text":"The latest exchange of fire comes after days of heightened tensions amid an increasingly strained ceasefire and stalled peace talks between Washington and Tehran."}],[{"start":157.45,"text":"Iranian state-affiliated media on Monday said Tehran was suspending back-channel negotiations with the US in response to the Israeli bombardment of Lebanon, warning that it could “complete the closure” of the strait, sending oil prices sharply higher."}],[{"start":171.54999999999998,"text":"After the White House last week suggested the two sides were nearing an agreement, Donald Trump on Tuesday insisted the US and Iran were still talking. In a post to his Truth Social platform, the US president said “conversations” had been “going on continuously”."}],[{"start":186.64999999999998,"text":"“Where they lead, one never knows, but as I told Iran, ‘It’s time, one way or another, for you to make a Deal. You’ve been doing this for 47 years, and it cannot be allowed to go on any longer!’” Trump wrote. "}],[{"start":197.39999999999998,"text":"Additional reporting by Jacob Judah and Abigail Hauslohner in Washington"}],[{"start":210.49999999999997,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780461351_7442.mp3"}