US Launches Fresh Strikes on Iran After Jordan Attacks
The US launched fresh Iran strikes on Wednesday in response to Iranian attacks on US forces in Jordan, as the five-month-old conflict widens to include strikes in Iraq and a drone incident at an Egyptian port.
US Renews Strikes on Iran
U.S. Central Command stated that strikes against Iran began at 8:00 p.m. ET, targeting IRGC sites including command centers, missile and drone facilities, coastal defenses and maritime capabilities. [5] The strikes aimed to further diminish threats posed by Iran and its proxies to American forces, commercial shipping, and neighboring Gulf countries. [5] U.S. forces began launching strikes against Iran at 8:00 p.m. ET today (0000 GMT), U.S. Central Command said in a statement. [4] The strikes are a powerful response to yesterday’s attempted Iranian attacks on U.S. forces based in the Middle East. [4] U.S. Central Command said the U.S. struck dozens of IRGC targets including military command centers, missile and drone facilities, coastal surveillance and defense sites, and maritime capabilities. [5]
Iranian Attacks Preceding the Strikes
Iran confirmed overnight that it had fired on U.S. bases in Jordan and at ships in the Strait of Hormuz. [4] Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had fired several ballistic missiles at U.S. military installations in Jordan, and had struck three tankers that were attempting to transit through the Strait of Hormuz along an unauthorised route. [4] Jordan’s military said it had shot down five Iranian missiles. [4] Jordan says it downs 5 Iranian missiles on 4th consecutive day of attacks. [2] Army says air defenses intercepted missiles with no casualties reported, following similar interceptions over previous three days. [2] U.S. bases in Jordan have lately become primary Iranian targets, where three U.S. service members were killed this month in the worst U.S. losses since March. [4]
Drone Strike on Tanker at Egyptian Port
A drone launched from Iran struck a US-owned gas storage tanker at Egypt’s Damietta port, causing a fire that spread to a second vessel. [1] The explosion of a US tanker at Egypt's Mediterranean port of Damietta on Wednesday was the result of an Iranian drone attack, the New York Times reported on Thursday, citing two Iranians who requested anonymity. [1] The drone hit floating storage tanker Energos Winter, causing a fire that spread to another vessel, Gaslog Salem, three trading sources familiar with the incident said. [1] On Wednesday, maritime security firm Ambrey said that a drone hit a US-owned gas storage tanker at the port of Damietta. [1] A statement from Egypt's petroleum ministry confirmed a fire at the port but made no mention of a drone attack and did not provide a cause for the incident. [1]
Joint US-Saudi Action in Iraq
US and Saudi forces struck Iran-backed paramilitary groups in Iraq, killing at least 20 and wounding 32 according to the groups, with Iraqi officials denouncing the action as a violation of sovereignty. [4] Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, powerful Iran-backed paramilitary groups incorporated into the Iraqi security forces, said at least 20 members were killed and 32 wounded in U.S.-Saudi strikes targeting several bases across Iraq. [4] The office of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who took power just two months ago, urged the parties involved to avoid escalation and said he wanted to keep the country out of regional conflicts. [4] The Iraqi presidency denounced the strikes on the paramilitaries as “an unacceptable attack and a flagrant violation of Iraq’s sovereignty”, while also calling for a halt to attacks by armed groups against Iraq’s neighbours. [4] The joint U.S.-Saudi attacks marked the first time Riyadh has publicly joined strikes alongside Washington. [4]
Market and Regional Impact
Oil prices surged more than 8 percent to above $90 a barrel amid the escalation. [4] Oil prices shot up on Wednesday in one of the sharpest spikes of the five-month war. [4] Brent crude futures rose more than 8% to push the benchmark well above $90 a barrel, reversing much of a plunge earlier this week when Trump had unexpectedly halted U.S. strikes. [4] The latest strikes in Iraq and Egypt threatened to draw more Middle Eastern countries into the conflict, after the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen last week declared a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia. [4]
Context of the Five-Month War
The war began in February, when the U.S. and Israel launched a bombing campaign in Iran that Trump said would last only a few weeks. [4] A temporary ceasefire agreement in June collapsed amid renewed fighting over the strait, which Iran says it now controls. [4] U.S. President Donald Trump has said the U.S. would strike Iran "hard" after Tehran targeted a U.S. military base in Jordan. [5] Earlier on Wednesday, a drone hit a U.S.-owned gas storage tanker at Egypt’s Mediterranean port of Damietta, British maritime security firm Ambrey said in an initial assessment, while U.S. and Saudi forces launched strikes against Iran-aligned groups in eastern Iraq and Iran fired missiles at U.S. troops in Jordan. [4]
What to watch next: Saudi Arabia’s defense minister met with Vice President JD Vance in Washington on Wednesday to urge the Trump administration not to escalate the conflict further by attacking Yemen’s Houthis and carrying out additional strikes against the Iran-aligned militias in Iraq.
