Eleven days after it was signed, the ceasefire is already close to breaking. Iran hit Bahrain and Kuwait this morning. Venezuela's death toll has passed 1,400. And the Lebanon deal is already unravelling. Here is what Sunday, June 28 looks like.
Iran Strikes Bahrain and Kuwait. Trump Threatens to "Complete the Job."
This morning, Iran's IRGC launched ballistic missiles and drones at the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain and the Ali Al Salem air base in Kuwait, in response to fresh US strikes on Iranian coastal sites on Saturday. Air raid sirens sounded across Bahrain. Kuwait said its air defenses engaged seven incoming ballistic missiles, reporting shrapnel damage but no casualties. Bahrain's Defense Force said its systems destroyed three missiles and several drones. Oman, Qatar, and the UAE condemned the attacks. Bahrain called Iran's conduct a violation of its sovereignty and a threat to regional stability.
The chain of events that led here started Thursday, when an Iranian drone struck the Singapore-flagged container ship Ever Lovely in the Strait of Hormuz, damaging its bridge. The US struck back on Friday, targeting Iranian surveillance infrastructure, radar sites, and drone facilities. Iran called Friday's strikes an "explicit violation" of the June 17 MOU. On Saturday morning, Iran hit again -- this time striking the Panama-flagged crude tanker Kiku, which was carrying over 2 million barrels of oil for Qatar's state energy company. Qatar is one of the two countries mediating the US-Iran negotiations. The US launched a second round of strikes the same day. Then came Sunday's IRGC attack on Bahrain and Kuwait.
Trump responded on Truth Social, warning that if Iran does not stop, the US will be "forced to militarily complete the job" -- adding that "the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist" if it comes to that. CENTCOM confirmed no US casualties or significant damage from the Bahrain and Kuwait strikes so far. Direct US-Iran talks are still nominally scheduled to resume at Burgenstock early next week. Whether that holds after today is unclear.
Hezbollah Rejects the Lebanon Deal. Israel Keeps Striking Anyway.
On Saturday, less than 24 hours after Lebanon and Israel signed their framework agreement in Washington, Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem called it "humiliating, shameful and a surrender of sovereignty." His group will not disarm. It will not leave southern Lebanon. Fighting will continue until Israeli forces withdraw first, he said. Supporters took to the streets of Beirut on Friday night, burning tyres and blocking roads near the airport.
This matters because the deal's central mechanism -- a phased Israeli withdrawal linked directly to Hezbollah's disarmament -- assumes Hezbollah's cooperation. Without it, the agreement has no enforcement mechanism. Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz has already told the IDF to "prepare for an extended stay" in the security zone. Netanyahu described the withdrawal from one area as leaving positions the army "does not need" and insisted forces remain "until Hezbollah and all terrorist organisations are disarmed." On Saturday, Israel carried out a drone strike near Nabatieh, an area outside the security zone it had just agreed to vacate.
Iran and Hezbollah also say the MOU signed with the US already promised an end to hostilities in Lebanon. The Israel-Lebanon framework was signed separately, without Hezbollah, and contradicts the broader MOU in their reading. That is three conflicting documents now governing a conflict that none of them have actually stopped.
Venezuela: Death Toll Passes 1,400. The Rescue Window Is Closing.
Four days after the twin earthquakes struck northwestern Venezuela, the confirmed death toll reached 1,430 as of Saturday, with over 68,900 people still reported missing. The mainshock, at 7.5 magnitude, was the strongest to hit Venezuela in more than a century. La Guaira, the coastal state north of Caracas, bore the worst of the damage: over 1,400 buildings destroyed and Simón Bolívar International Airport still severely damaged, with all commercial flights suspended.
Urban search and rescue teams from the US, Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador, and at least 25 other countries are working across multiple collapse sites. Constant aftershocks and a shortage of heavy machinery in the hardest-hit coastal areas are slowing operations. The USGS has modelled a 44 percent probability that the final death toll exceeds 10,000. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez said electric services have been restored to around 60 percent of pre-quake levels. The Trump administration has pledged $150 million in aid, with officials indicating an additional nine-figure package in the coming days.
For rescuers, the arithmetic is brutal. The 72-hour survival window for people trapped under rubble has passed. Each hour now reduces the probability of finding someone alive. Hundreds are still believed to be buried across La Guaira and Caracas.
US-Iran Peace Talks: Still Open, But Fraying Fast.
Technically, diplomacy is continuing. Pakistan and Qatar have confirmed that US-Iran technical talks are still planned for early next week in Switzerland. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that only Iran can reopen the Strait of Hormuz and warned that outside arrangements would "only complicate the situation." That statement is a reminder that Tehran views the Strait not just as a waterway, but as its primary leverage in the negotiations.
The two sides are also still publicly contradicting each other on what the MOU actually says. Iran insists sanctions on oil and petrochemical sales have been waived. The US has not confirmed this. Iran says a $300 billion reconstruction fund was agreed. The US has not confirmed this either. Meanwhile, Iran's inflation reached 88.6 percent year-on-year in June, driven by the war and sanctions. Whatever the two sides eventually agree, Iran's economy has already taken damage that no 60-day framework reverses quickly.
Eleven days into a memorandum of understanding meant to end a war, there have been at least five major military incidents between the two sides. The talks are not dead. But the gap between what was signed on June 17 and what is happening on the ground grows wider each day.
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Santhosh Vishwamitra
Santhosh Vishwamitra is a web developer and the founder of Vishwamitra Chronicles, a research-driven publication covering geopolitics, science, civilizations, and the future. Launched in February 2026.
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