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U.S. resumes strikes on Iran in retaliation for attack on American troops
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− resumes strikes on Iran in retaliation for attack on American troops The U.S.
+ retaliates against ‘surprise attack’ by Iran in Jordan The U.S.
− said it had struck "dozens" of targets belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps.
+ attacks were in retaliation for what the U.S.
− The multiple flare-ups, after several days of relative calm, raised the risk of a return to all-out war.
+ Central Command called "an attempted surprise attack" with ballistic missiles on Tuesday against U.S.
+ forces in the Middle East.
− resumes strikes on Iran in retaliation for attack on American troops July 30, 20264:55 AM ET By
The Associated Press
A man sits on a surfboard as a container ship and other commercial vessels appear anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Monday, July 27, 2026.
+ retaliates against 'surprise attack' by Iran in Jordan Updated July 30, 20267:37 AM ET Originally published July 30, 20264:55 AM ET By
Jane Arraf
Mourners carry the bodies of members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) who were killed earlier in Diyala in central Iraq by US-Saudi strikes, during the funeral in Baghdad on July 29, 2026.
− Razieh Poudat/AP Photo/ISNA hide caption
CAIRO — An Iranian strike hit a Chinese firm's building in northern Kuwait Thursday morning, severely damaging the structure and killing a worker, Kuwait's military said, hours after Jordan's air defenses shot down five missiles launched from Iran.
Middle East conflict Trump threatens a major escalation in Iran after 13 straight nights of strikes The attacks came after the U.S.
+ Murtadha Ridha/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
AMMAN, Jordan - The U.S.
− military said it had completed "a heavy wave of strikes against Iran," conducted in response to an earlier Iranian missile attack on a U.S.
+ military said it launched a 'heavy wave' of airstrikes in Iran Thursday against military command centers and missile facilities.
− base in Jordan.
+ Iran says a residential building was also hit, killing two children.
− Central Command said in a social media post that the U.S.
+ Middle East conflict Trump threatens a major escalation in Iran after 13 straight nights of strikes The U.S.
− had struck "dozens" of targets belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, including military command centers as well as missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance and defense sites.
No casualties were reported from Jordan's interception of the missiles, Jordan's state-run Petra news agency said, quoting the spokesman for the country's armed forces.
The flare-ups on multiple fronts after several days of relative calm raised the risk of a return to all-out war.
+ attacks were in retaliation for what the U.S.
− It also underscored the difficulty of winding down a five-month conflict that has jolted the world economy and is unpopular among Americans.
+ Central Command called "an attempted surprise attack" with ballistic missiles on Tuesday against U.S.
− The fighting was likely to add to concerns that the U.S.
+ forces in the Middle East.
− is further drawing down already diminished stockpiles of sophisticated munitions needed to defend its bases and allies.
The U.S.
+ Iran said on Wednesday its attacks targeted the Muwafaq al-Salti air base in the eastern desert.
− Central Command said in a social media post that the United States had struck "dozens" of targets belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, including military command centers as well as missile and drone facilities, and coastal surveillance and defense sites.
The new strikes came hours after U.S.
+ The Jordanian base is a U.S.
− President Donald Trump vowed to hit Iran "very hard" after it targeted a base in Jordan that hosts U.S.
+ air hub and the frequent target of attacks, including one that killed three U.S.
− troops.
+ service members in mid July.
− Iran's official IRNA news agency said three people were killed and two were wounded in a strike on the island of Qeshm, which lies just off the Iranian mainland in the Strait of Hormuz.
+ Jordan's military said it shot down five Iranian missiles targeting its territory early Thursday.
− The latest barrage came after the U.S.
+ President Trump told reporters Wednesday regarding Iran: "We're going to be hitting them very hard because it's our turn to hit them."
In Iraq, where the U.S.
− partnered with Saudi Arabia to strike Iran-backed militias in neighboring Iraq, killing at least 20 fighters and six Iranian advisers on Wednesday.
Elsewhere, British maritime security firm Ambrey said drone strikes ignited fires on two natural gas vessels at the Egyptian port of Damietta on Wednesday.
+ and Saudi Arabia attacked seven paramilitary bases on Wednesday, Iran-backed militias said they have given the Iraqi government a week-long deadline to respond to those attacks.
− It was not immediately clear who was responsible for the strikes on a U.S.-owned floating storage facility and a Greek-owned tanker.
+ The militias said at least 20 fighters were killed in the attacks.
− No injuries were reported.
+ Iran's Revolutionary Guard said four of its members, who serve as military advisors with the militias, were killed in those strikes.
− The office of the Egyptian prime minister said initial investigations showed the fires on the two vessels had been caused by a drone.
+ A man inspects the damage at the site of a strike in Bartalla in the northern Iraqi Nineveh province on July 29, 2026. Zaid Al-Obeidi/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
The paramilitary groups are officially part of Iraqi government security forces, but some of the most powerful militias are beyond government control.
− Egypt, a close U.S.
+ The U.S.
− ally and regional mediator, is one of the only countries in the Middle East to have been spared direct military action during the war.
+ has pressed successive Iraqi leaders, including newly appointed prime minister Ali al-Zaidi, to rein in Iran-allied militias with little success.
− A strike by Iran or its allies, if confirmed, would mark a significant widening of the conflict.
Asked during an Oval Office event if Iran was responsible for the strikes on the natural gas vessels, Trump responded: "It's a little more of the same."
Middle East conflict Trump says Saudi Arabia's nuclear deal hinges on the kingdom normalizing Israel ties "In the meantime, we're going to be hitting them very hard because it's our turn to hit them," he added.
Saudi Arabia had accused the Iraqi militias of firing drones against its oil facilities over the past days.
+ Zaidi and President Trump met in Washington in July.
− An umbrella group of Iraqi militias initially denied the allegations, while another Iran-backed group — the Houthi rebels in Yemen — said they had attacked Saudi energy facilities as part of a separate but related conflict.
Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman met separately on Wednesday with Trump and Vice President JD Vance, according to two people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment publicly about the private meetings.
They said the Saudi decision to join the U.S.
+ The U.S.
− attacks against the Iraqi militias was meant to send a message to Iran that it wouldn't tolerate Iran or its proxies targeting the Saudi oil industry and other critical infrastructure.
+ president said they had 'tremendous chemistry."
Zaidi is a businessman with little political experience chosen after the U.S.
− At the same time, the defense minister underscored to Trump and Vance that the Saudis want to see a de-escalation in the war and for Washington and Tehran to return to negotiations.
+ vetoed a leading candidate, Nouri al-Malaki, who had previously assumed power with U.S. help but was deemed to be too close to Iran.
− Before the latest eruption, mediators had expressed optimism about bringing the U.S.
+ Middle East conflict Trump says Saudi Arabia's nuclear deal hinges on the kingdom normalizing Israel ties Iran-backed militias flourished in Iraq after the security vacuum created in the U.S.
− and Iran back to the negotiating table.
+ invasion in 2003 that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein.
− An interim agreement collapsed in recent weeks over renewed fighting in the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global energy supplies that Iranian attacks have again effectively closed.
+ The militias and Iran-backed political parties are now woven into the fabric of Iraq's security and politics.
− A regional official said mediators are "still trying with both sides" to restore calm and get the ceasefire back on track.
+ Iran said four of the security personnel killed in U.S.
− He gave no details on whether progress was being made and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door diplomacy.
+ and Saudi attacks Wednesday in Iraq were members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
− Saudi Arabia is also locked in a renewed conflict with the Houthis.
+ At funeral ceremonies Wednesday in Baghdad, some mourners chanted 'death to America' and death to Saudi rulers.
− The rebels have declared a blockade of Saudi shipping that could choke off another crucial Middle East trade route, the Bab el-Mandeb strait from the Red Sea into the Gulf of Aden.
+ The U.S. and Saudi Arabia launched the attacks during a major Shia religious commemoration which culminates next Wednesday. Millions of pilgrims converge on the holy city of Karbala, south of Baghdad, for Arbaeen, the fortieth day of mourning for the killing of Imam Hussein 14 centuries ago, a definitive event in the schism between Shia and Sunni Islam.
− On Monday, the Houthis said they had launched drones targeting oil facilities used to transport oil across Saudi Arabia to the Red Sea port city of Yanbu, a key bypass for Saudi exports blocked by Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.
+ Prime Minister Zaidi appeared to have cancelled a planned trip to Saudi Arabia after the attacks. Iraq's Shia-led governments who took power after the toppling of Saddam Hussein have spent years trying to repair relations with Saudi Arabia and other Sunni Gulf states.
− The rebels said the attack was in response to a Saudi drone they said had breached Yemen's airspace.
+ In the Strait of Hormuz, Iran said Thursday it had turned back two oil tankers being guided by U.S. aircraft trying to cross the shipping waterway. It said one of them caught fire, but gave no details.
− Planet Labs satellite imagery from Monday analyzed by The Associated Press showed damage to Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq oil-processing facility.
+ Iran also said it allowed a Qatari tanker to pass through the channel after Qatar coordinated with Iran.
− The massive facility is capable of processing approximately 7 million barrels of crude oil per day.
+ There was no confirmation from Qatar.