Kuwait Accuses Iran of IRGC Attack on Bubiyan Island

Kuwait accused Iran on Tuesday of sending an armed team from its Revolutionary Guard to infiltrate Bubiyan Island on May 1 in an attempted attack that Kuwaiti forces disrupted. Four members of the six-man team were detained while two escaped. Kuwait identified those held as two naval captains, a naval lieutenant and an army lieutenant from the Revolutionary Guard.

The island in the northwest Persian Gulf near Iraq and Iran is home to the under-construction Mubarak Al Kabeer Port, a China-funded project that forms part of Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative. That port project had previously come under attack by Iran during the recent regional war.

The accusation by Kuwait, which came under repeated Iranian attack during the conflict and even after a shaky ceasefire took hold, arrives as President Donald Trump prepares to travel to Beijing this week for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Iran is expected to feature in those talks. Beijing has long purchased sanctioned Iranian crude oil and has been economically damaged by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which triggered a global energy crisis. Iran did not immediately respond to Kuwait's allegation.

The claim has heightened fears that ongoing incidents across the region could unravel the fragile ceasefire and return the Middle East to open warfare. Negotiations between the United States and Iran remain at a standstill while Tehran maintains its chokehold on the narrow Strait of Hormuz.

Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee that Israel had sent Iron Dome anti-missile batteries and personnel to operate them to the United Arab Emirates during the war. Huckabee made the statement on stage at the Tel Aviv Conference in Israel. "I'd like to say a word of appreciation for United Arab Emirates, the first Abraham accord member," Huckabee said at the Tel Aviv Conference.

"Just look at the benefits. " — Mike Huckabee, May 12, 2026 (AP) The disclosure marks the first publicly acknowledged deployment of Israeli military assets to the UAE, a federation of seven sheikdoms on the Arabian Peninsula that includes Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

The UAE normalized relations with Israel in 2020 under the Abraham Accords, a move that drew sharp criticism from Iran. The UAE has faced Iranian missile and drone attacks even after the ceasefire and has closed Iranian government-linked sites within its borders.

Huckabee's remarks followed a similar statement the previous night by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz at an event at the Israeli mission to the UN. The coordinated comments suggest the information was released intentionally with the approval of both the UAE and Israel.

Neither the UAE nor Israel immediately responded to requests for comment. On Thursday, during a visit by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to the UAE, Emirati leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan took him to an air base where Egyptian pilots and Rafael fighter jets are stationed, marking the first public acknowledgment of that foreign detachment on Emirati soil.

In a related development Tuesday, Bahraini prosecutors announced that at least two dozen people received prison sentences on charges including espionage and conspiring with Iran's Revolutionary Guard. Three received life terms while others got shorter sentences.

Bahrain, ruled by a Sunni monarchy with a Shiite majority population, has issued dozens of such Iran-related convictions since the war began. Prosecutors and the Interior Ministry have alleged that Iran maintains cells inside Bahrain for espionage and target identification.

Rights groups contend the island nation has used the conflict to intensify a crackdown on political dissidents and its Shiite citizens. Huckabee used his Tel Aviv appearance to urge additional Gulf states to join the Abraham Accords, which already include Bahrain alongside the UAE.

He expressed optimism that more countries would soon normalize ties with Israel despite widespread Arab anger over Israel's military campaigns that followed Hamas' 2023 attack, which have left the Gaza Strip devastated and seen Israeli forces control territory in Lebanon and Syria.

The ambassador also sought to reinforce U.S. backing for Israel in the recent conflict, telling the audience that "Israel is the appetizer, America has always been the entrée" for Iran's theocracy. He asked rhetorically whether Gulf states were more likely to be attacked by Iran or by Israel, noting that Israel had helped while Iran had attacked.

Definition of Operational Area Around

Mohammad Akbarzadeh, deputy political director of the IRGC Navy, said the strait is no longer viewed as a narrow stretch around a handful of islands but instead has been greatly enlarged in scope and military significance. Separately, a senior Iranian lawmaker warned that if attacked again, Iran could enrich its uranium stocks to weapons-grade levels of 90 percent purity.

Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, said the option would be reviewed in parliament. The developments come as the region remains on edge despite the ceasefire. Kuwait provided no explanation for the delay in linking the May 1 incident to Iran.

The timing of its announcement, just before Trump's meeting with Xi, adds a layer of diplomatic complexity as China, a major buyer of Iranian oil, weighs its regional interests.