By STEPHEN M. LEPORE, US SENIOR REPORTER
The US was able to thwart an Iranian attack on a base in Jordan Tuesday night as they worked with Saudi Arabia to strike bases in Iraq used by Tehran-backed militias.
The US-Saudi attack on the base in Northern Iraq left eight members of the Iran-backed militia dead, according to the Iraqi armed group’s command.
The attacks were the first military moves between the two nations since President Trump paused strikes to give diplomacy a chance.
Trump had met earlier in the day with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Iraqi bases were used by Iranian militias to launch attacks in recent days, CENTCOM said.
Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces called the attacks a ‘highly dangerous escalation.’
The strike came after US forces said missiles from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps were intercepted in Jordan.
The attack in Jordan took place at approximately 5:45pm ET on US forces based in the Middle East, US Central Command confirmed.
‘All Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted. US forces remain vigilant and at a high state of readiness,’ CENTCOM said in a statement.
The US also warned that further attacks on American troops or Saudi Arabia’s energy infrastructure risked additional action.
US forces intercepted a surprise ballistic missile attack from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as tensions continued to escalate between America and Iran
The attack took place at approximately 5:45pm ET on US forces based in the Middle East, US Central Command confirmed
The US and Iran had experienced a brief period of calm, during which neither announced attacks for days following weeks of escalation over the Strait of Hormuz.
The Persian Gulf waterway is a narrow chokepoint through which 20 percent of the world’s oil normally flows.
Iran effectively closed the strait when the war began by firing at freighters and tankers off its coast or threatening, too.
Following the signing of an interim ceasefire deal in June, a battle for control over the strait has erupted.
Iran demanded that ships use a route near its coastline and said it can potentially charge fees.
Ships were increasingly navigating a southern route along the coast of Oman under a US overwatch operation when Iran attacked some vessels.
Earlier Tuesday, Saudi Arabia said that it shot down drones fired by Iran-backed militias in Iraq for a second day, while Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed to have forced a Saudi oil tanker to turn around as part of their self-styled blockade of the kingdom.
The attacks ended a period of calm between the United States and Iran, neither of which had announced attacks for days following weeks of escalation over the Strait of Hormuz.
The Saudi Defense Ministry said in a statement that air defenses intercepted and destroyed several drones that had attempted to target petroleum facilities in the nation’s eastern region.
It said the attacks were ‘once again launched from Iraqi territory and carried out by Iran-affiliated terrorist militias.’
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi ordered security agencies to investigate after the Saudis alleged a similar attack on Monday.
The Iraqi military said in a statement that Iraq is committed to ‘preventing Iraqi territory from being used as a route or launching point for any attack targeting brotherly or friendly countries.
This screen grab taken from video footage released on July 20, 2026 by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC)’s Sepah News shows what they say a missile being launched from an undisclosed location towards US targets in the Gulf
The Iraqi militias have denied any role in the drone attacks. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed armed groups, called the Saudi claims ‘fabrications’ and implied that Monday’s attacks were carried out by the Houthis, who had themselves claimed to have attacked Saudi oil facilities.
Iran and the US paused their fighting over the weekend, though tensions remain high even as officials said mediators achieved progress in getting the two sides back to negotiations.
Tehran said Tuesday that US strikes during an earlier period of escalation destroyed an airport and a marine control tower, and caused damage to 12 bridges and two tunnels, among other infrastructure.
The US military said at the time that it had struck numerous military targets in response to Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Arab countries hosting US forces.
The attack comes the same day Netanyahu launched a charm offensive on President Donald Trump, working top Cabinet members in a place of worship as anxiety grows that Israel could move to widen the war with Iran.
Netanyahu turned the somber funeral for the late Senator Lindsey Graham at Washington National Cathedral into a backdrop for diplomatic networking.
He rubbed shoulders with Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and was also seen speaking closely with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and his wife.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a charm offensive in Washington on Tuesday, working the room with top Trump Cabinet members following a critical White House meeting with President Donald Trump , even as anxiety grows among Republicans that Israel could drag the US into an expanding war with Iran
He was also spotted among senior Trump aides and administration heavyweights including Stephen Miller, Steve Witkoff, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, and Homeland Security chief Markwayne Mullin.
Netanyahu said he had an ‘excellent’ meeting with Trump at the White House on Tuesday, their first sitdown since launching a joint war against Iran that offered Netanyahu a chance to smooth out strains in their relationship.
The closed-door meeting lasted nearly an hour and a half and was ‘positive and productive,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
The White House did not immediately offer more details.
It comes as both leaders face growing pressures at home.
Netanyahu is up for reelection and is embattled in part because of his deteriorating relationship with Trump.
Trump is under pressure to end an unpopular war that has wreaked economic havoc and driven prices higher ahead of midterm elections this November.
An Israeli official briefed on the meeting said Netanyahu made it clear to Trump and his Cabinet that if Iran were to attack Israel, they would respond, but that beyond that, they would trust the judgment of the president regarding next steps.
The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to share details of a private meeting.
Despite signs of tension between the two before the meeting, Netanyahu was effusive afterward in a post on Instagram, noting that the meeting included Trump’s ‘entire senior team.’
The US’ ability to intercept Iran’s incoming strikes has become an increasingly salient issue as lawmakers, members of the military and experts raise concerns over the nation’s diminishing stockpiles of missile interceptors.
The Center for Strategic and International Studies released an analysis Monday that said the nation’s shrunken inventories of Patriot and THAAD interceptors may force the U.S. and its Middle Eastern allies to take more risks to conserve those air defenses.
For example, the Washington think tank said American forces may launch fewer missiles against incoming Iranian drones and missiles, raising the chance of one getting through.
The Pentagon, however, pushed back against concerns that its capabilities have diminished.
‘America’s military is the most powerful in the world and has everything it needs to execute at the time and place of the President’s choosing,’ Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, said in a statement Tuesday.
Original Source: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16012107/Iran-launches-surprise-attack-US-base.html