Ongoing US-Iran military exchanges over the Strait of Hormuz have driven repeated Iranian strikes on US assets in Bahrain, home to the Fifth Fleet. In early October 2026, Iran's Revolutionary Guards launched missile and drone attacks on Bahraini targets including Bandar Salman after US strikes on Iranian sites, following earlier attacks in June and September tied to shipping incidents and alleged ceasefire breaches. Bahrain has intercepted hundreds of projectiles since February, condemned the pattern as systematic aggression, and pursued domestic measures against alleged Iranian-linked actors. Diplomatic efforts to reopen the waterway and resume talks continue alongside these escalations, with trader consensus reflecting the persistence of direct targeting risks in the near term.