Iran launched multiple ballistic missiles at US military bases in Jordan on Wednesday, breaking a five-day pause in hostilities as President Donald Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House for talks on the direction of the Middle East war.
US Central Command confirmed that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired several ballistic missiles in what it called an attempted surprise attack on American forces stationed in Jordan. The US military said it successfully intercepted five missiles over Jordanian territory, with no immediate reports of casualties at American facilities.
The IRGC said its air force targeted a US airbase and CENTCOM’s command center in Jordan, claiming the strikes were a response to continued American threats against Iranian interests. As long as threats against the Islamic Republic of Iran continue, the IRGC said in a statement, the resistance will continue.
The timing of the attack appeared calculated. With Trump and Netanyahu meeting in Washington to coordinate strategy on Iran, the missile strikes served as a direct message from Tehran that it cannot be excluded from any diplomatic process shaping the region’s future.
Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher, reporting from Washington, described the attack as Iran sending a message to Trump that it must be involved in all discussions about the conflict and its resolution. Netanyahu has been pushing for a more aggressive posture toward Iran and is reported to have raised concerns about Iranian nuclear activities at a facility known as Pickaxe Mountain during the White House meeting.
The missile strikes shattered a brief period of relative calm. Trump had ordered a halt to the US bombing campaign against Iran on July 24, claiming that good-faith talks were under way with Tehran. The pause had raised tentative hopes of a diplomatic off-ramp to the conflict that has raged since February, with oil prices declining as traders priced in the possibility of a resolution.
But the Iranian attack reversed those market moves immediately. US oil futures jumped more than four percent to above 2 a barrel, while Brent crude climbed past 8 a barrel after CENTCOM confirmed the missile barrage. The Strait of Oman shipping channel remained a flashpoint, with the IRGC saying it had stopped three oil tankers in the waterway for ignoring warnings.
In Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar said the latest escalation appeared to be a preemptive move by Iran rather than a reactionary measure. After 13 consecutive days of tit-for-tat bombing, these latest attacks will most certainly impact mediation efforts, he reported. Trump has threatened to restart strikes if negotiations stagnate, while Iran has denied seeking to resume formal talks with Washington.
Analysts at the Middle East Institute said Tehran was trying to retake the initiative and momentum after days of US-declared pauses. Iran has expressed skepticism that the US uses pauses between attacks to prepare for another phase of violence, and the latest strikes suggest Tehran believes Washington is doing exactly that.
The attacks also put Jordan in a difficult position. The kingdom hosts US forces as part of the anti-ISIS coalition but has sought to avoid becoming a direct theater in the US-Iran war. Five missile interceptions were reported over Jordan, with the state news agency confirming the defensive operations.
