Zolfaghar and Qadr missiles, along with a metal model of a mini submarine, are on display at Azadi Square in Tehran, Iran, on July 24, 2026, as reciprocal attacks between Iran and the United States intensify amid tensions linked to parallel routes established in the Strait of Hormuz.
Fatemeh Bahrami | Anadolu | Getty Images
Iran fired several ballistic missiles at U.S. forces in the Middle East late Tuesday U.S. time, according to U.S. Central Command, sharply heightening regional tensions after a brief lull in hostilities.
Centcom said in a post on X that the missiles were launched from Iran and that all of them 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,” the command said.
The U.S. military did not identify the specific target of the missile attack. Axios, citing U.S. officials, reported that the strike was aimed at a U.S. base in Jordan.
In a later statement on X, Centcom said U.S. and Saudi forces carried out strikes Tuesday U.S. time on “multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites” in eastern Iraq. The operation, it said, came in response to more than 30 drone attacks over the previous three days by “Iran-aligned terrorists.”
Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said the strikes were conducted in coordination with U.S. Central Command. The ministry added that the kingdom does not seek further escalation, but will respond to any aggression directed against it.
Earlier, Riyadh said drones launched from Iraq by “Iran-affiliated terrorist militias” had 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.
