30, July 226
The United States military has commenced strikes against Iran in response to what it described as an attempted surprise attack on American forces in the region.
In a statement posted on X, the US Central Command said the operation was “a powerful response” to attacks carried out on Tuesday. Those attacks targeted American bases in Jordan and commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest escalation follows a day after the conflict broadened with the first publicly acknowledged joint strikes by the US and Saudi Arabia. Those strikes hit sites linked to Iranian-backed groups in Iraq.
The renewed fighting comes after several days of relative calm, during which both sides appeared to pause military action. That pause had fueled speculation that diplomatic discussions were resuming in an effort to find a way out of the crisis.
The president described the reported talks as “very friendly negotiations”. However, Tehran denied that any discussions were taking place at the time.
Hours before Wednesday’s strikes were announced, the US president told reporters at the White House that a retaliation was imminent. He said the US would “hit them very hard” because it was now the turn of American forces to respond, and added that Iran was aware of the planned action and had asked that it be called off.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for the Tuesday attacks. It said it had targeted a US air base and a command center in Jordan in what it called a response to aggression by American forces. The Guard also said its naval units struck three oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz after the vessels allegedly ignored warnings and used what it termed an unsafe and illegal route through the strategic waterway.
This is not the first major exchange in the current round of hostilities. In February, the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran. At the time, officials projected the confrontation would last only a few weeks. Five months later, the war continues with no clear end in sight.
Last Friday, the US paused a 13-night bombing campaign that had focused on Iranian weapons depots and military installations. Officials said dozens of people were reported killed during that period.
On Tuesday, Central Command said the joint US-Saudi operation hit multiple logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq. The action was described as a direct response to more than 30 drone attacks linked to the Revolutionary Guard in the previous 72 hours.
Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, a paramilitary group dominated by Iran-backed Shia militias, said at least 20 of its fighters were killed in the strikes on its bases. The Iraqi presidency condemned the attacks, calling them an unacceptable violation of Iraq’s sovereignty. The US president, in an interview with Fox News, said the strikes had been coordinated with the Iraqi government.
The wider regional rivalry remains a key backdrop. Saudi Arabia, which positions itself as the leading Sunni power, and Iran, the largest Shia power, have been competing for influence across the Middle East for decades. That competition has fueled proxy confrontations that are now drawing in direct US military action.
