In a decisive response to a recent assault in Jordan that claimed the lives of two U.S. service members and left another unaccounted for, the United States has committed to launching a new wave of airstrikes against Iran. This striking development promises to heighten tensions as the forces gear up for action.
Issued shortly after 6 p.m., a statement from CENTCOM outlined the purpose behind the strikes: to severely impair Iran’s ability to threaten commercial routes through the critical Strait of Hormuz and to swiftly deliver retribution to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces responsible for the recent attacks on American personnel in Jordan.
The backdrop to this response unfolded just hours prior, as Iran launched an assault involving ballistic missiles and drones against the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. The nighttime raid on Friday resulted in one U.S. service member missing, as confirmed by Central Command.
In the wake of the attack, four American soldiers required medical evacuation to Jordanian hospitals, where they received treatment and have since been discharged, according to a post from CENTCOM on X.
While the incident continues to unfold, CENTCOM remains sensitive to the affected families, opting to withhold further details, including the identities of the deceased, until 24 hours have passed following notification of next of kin.
President Trump told NewsNation that the soldiers’ deaths were a ‘very sad thing.’ He added: ‘We hate to see it happen. It’s in service to our country.’
The president also reiterated that his administration would ‘never allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon.’
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed Trump’s sentiment in a statement on X, writing: ‘Godspeed, heroes. Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve.’
Two US servicemembers have been killed in Jordan after their military base was struck by an Iranian attack on July 17. Pictured: A US strike from an American Navy cruiser launched on Friday
Shortly before Friday’s attack on Jordan, Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said that the US strikes on Iran would lead to ‘unforgettable lessons’ for the US, accusing President Trump of ‘seeking to escalate the conflict’
The deaths were the 15th and 16th among US servicemembers since the war with Iran began in February, with more than 430 others wounded.
After news broke of the deaths, Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, called the US’s actions in the region ‘criminal,’ referring to the country as the ‘Great Satan.’
‘The Great Satan – the criminal US – has now realized that the continuation of its trouble-free, domineering presence in the region is nothing but a naive fantacy,’ he wrote on his official X account.
The attacks from Iran came amid a fresh blitz across the Middle East in recent days, after negotiations with the Trump administration broke down and a ceasefire ended.
Friday marked the seventh straight night of strikes launched by the US against Iran, with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards retaliating with tit-for-tat attacks at US targets in Jordan, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain and Syria.
Shortly before Friday’s attack on Jordan, Khamenei said that the US strikes on Iran would lead to ‘unforgettable lessons’ for the US, accusing President Trump of ‘seeking to escalate the conflict.’
Hours after the US service members’ deaths were announced on Saturday, Iranian state media said several IRGC missiles were fired at an unspecified vessel in the Strait of Hormuz.
Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed by an Israeli airstrike in February, issued the chilling threat through a spokesperson on state TV.
The Iranian leader said Trump’s signature is now ‘worthless and invalid,’ after a tentative ceasefire agreement reached in April – and formally agreed upon last month – dramatically fell apart in recent days.
The remarks came hours after a negotiator said Tehran was suspending all of its commitments that were previously agreed upon with the US in June.
Khamenei also vowed to use Iran’s proxies in the Middle East, which he dubbed the ‘Axis of Resistance,’ to combat Trump’s attacks.
The Supreme Leader’s remarks were read by a spokesman on Iranian state TV as Khamenei has still not been seen in public since the war began, with reports indicating he was severely injured in the strikes that killed his father.
Hours after the US CENTCOM announced the deaths of servicemembers, Israel said it took out a Hezbollah drone unit in southern Lebanon on Saturday.
The strikes violate last month’s memorandum of understanding aimed at stopping military strikes in Lebanon.
Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun and his wife arrived in Washington DC, on Saturday afternoon for continued negotiations, according to a statement from his office.
Aoun met with Lebanon’s Ambassador to the United States Nada Hardini Maalouf, and administrative staff. He will meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump during his visit.
The Israeli military said it identified a Hezbollah terrorist cell operating drones outside the city of Nabatieh, and it ‘struck the terrorists in order to remove the threat posed to the IDF soldiers operating nearby.’
Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said President Trump’s signature is now ‘worthless and invalid,’ after a tentative ceasefire agreement reached in April – and formally agreed upon last month – dramatically fell apart in recent days
Continuous strikes this week have seen the US and Iran exchange attacks on infrastructure and military targets.
The attacks have intensified the conflict’s focus on the Strait of Hormuz, an essential waterway bordering Iran that previously carried over a fifth of the world’s crude oil.
The struggle over the Strait has seen energy prices skyrocket worldwide, with the fresh round of strikes now threatening civilian infrastructure in Iran including desalination plants for drinking water.
CENTCOM said early Saturday that its seventh straight night of strikes hit ‘surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage, and maritime capabilities.’
‘The U.S. has violated its commitments under the deal that was signed about a month ago and now Iran is ‘no longer implementing them,’ Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, told state TV.
There was no new word on mediation efforts.
Amid the recent blitz from US forces against Iran, Tehran’s energy ministry ordered citizens to turn off their air conditioning during peak hours as the country’s power grid came under strain.
The energy ministry said that the power restrictions were necessary ‘to help ensure a stable electricity supply in the southern provinces, which are currently facing extreme heat and attacks on electricity supply facilities.’
Temperatures in the capital were expected to hit triple digits Friday, with highs of 102F on Saturday and Sunday.