Iran targeted U.S. forces in the Middle East with several ballistic missiles late Tuesday stateside, U.S. Central Command said, raising tensions in the Middle East that had seen hostilities put on brief pause.
Centcom in a post on X said that the attack originated from Iran, but all missiles were intercepted. “Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces launched multiple ballistic missiles from Iran in an attempted surprise attack on U.S. forces based in the Middle East.”
While the U.S. military command did not specify where the attacks were aimed at, Axios reported the attack was directed at a U.S. base in Jordan, citing U.S. officials.
In a subsequent statement posted on X, Centcom said U.S. and Saudi forces struck “multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites” in eastern Iraq Tuesday stateside, retaliating against more than 30 drone attacks in the past three days by “Iran-aligned terrorists.”
Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry said the strikes were carried out in coordination with U.S. Central Command, and added the kingdom does not seek escalation, but will respond to any aggression it faces.
Riyadh said earlier that drones launched from Iraq by “Iran-affiliated terrorist militias” attempted to target petroleum facilities in Saudi Arabia.
Tensions have escalated after a two-day pause in a hostilities between Washington and Tehran, sending oil surging, after prices declined for three straight days.
U.S. President Donald Trump had set aside plans to escalate the war against Iran amid worries over diminishing stockpiles of Patriot interceptors and other air defense munitions in the Middle East, The New York Times had reported. Trump had dismissed concerns over stockpile depletion.
Iran had indicated it would stop carrying out attacks as long as the U.S. refrained from striking, Reuters had reported on Sunday, citing a senior Iranian official.
Separately, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported “suspicious activity,” in the Red Sea in a post on X.
The agency said the master of a tanker reported hearing an explosion whilst transiting in the southern Red Sea, without giving more details. The incident was reported on Monday, while the advisory was issued on Tuesday.
While it is not confirmed if the reported incident was perpetrated by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, it is known that the rebels had claimed to have attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the area last week, with Saudi Arabia retaliating against the rebels.
The Bab-el Mandeb strait in the Red Sea is a critical export channel for Saudi Arabian oil diverted from the Strait of Hormuz and a chokepoint for commercial shipping traffic.
Experts have warned that a closure of Bab el-Mandeb would block in those barrels, exacerbating the oil disruption triggered by Iran’s attacks on tankers in Hormuz.
