Iran has escalated its conflict with the United States, striking a military base in Jordan and attacking 10 ships in the Strait of Hormuz, following American claims of destroying five Iranian oil tankers. The attacks mark a sharp increase in violence that has shattered a month of relative calm in the region, hitting military, shipping, and energy assets while driving oil prices higher.
Missile Strikes and Claims of Damage
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced it fired ballistic missiles at a base near Al Azraq in Jordan, a facility used by US forces. According to an IRGC statement, the attack was a direct response to what it described as American aggression.
Although Iranian officials claimed the strikes inflicted heavy damage, Jordan’s military reported that its air defenses intercepted 18 of the 20 missiles fired, with the remaining two landing in unpopulated areas. There were no casualties reported in Jordan. A US official later stated that the Iranian attacks in Jordan were ineffective and that all American troops had been accounted for.
The tension has a history. Iran has targeted US assets and allies in the region throughout the current conflict, including in Jordan. In July, a strike killed at least two US military personnel.
The conflict escalated further as the US military’s Central Command posted video of strikes against five Iranian oil tankers, which the US identified as part of a “shadow network” funding the IRGC and its regional proxies. This operation was framed as a direct retaliation for the IRGC targeting a US Navy warship twice with ballistic missiles over the previous two days, highlighting a cycle of retaliatory strikes that began on 28 February with joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
Shipping Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz
On Wednesday, the IRGC announced it had attacked 10 ships attempting to cross a “prohibited and unsafe” area of the Strait of Hormuz. The targets included two US vessels and eight oil tankers.
Iran has also threatened oil tankers in Kuwaiti and Bahraini ports. A maritime security source reported that a liquefied natural gas tanker was damaged in the Emirati port of Khor Fakkan, though responsibility for that incident remains unclear.
Oil prices extended their gains on Wednesday morning as traders reacted to the disruption of tanker traffic in the vital energy conduit. The disruption of shipping routes, combined with attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis on Saudi Arabia, has added to supply concerns. Brent crude was nearing $100 a barrel as of early trade.
The Houthis, who control much of Yemen’s populated areas, have further pressured US allies by periodically disrupting shipping on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula at the entrance to the Red Sea, adding another layer of complexity to the maritime security picture.
Escalation Beyond the Gulf
The conflict has spread beyond the immediate Gulf region. The Houthi group, which controls much of Yemen, launched a broad operation deep into Saudi territory on Tuesday. They used drones and missiles to strike a Saudi air base in Khamis Mushait and assets belonging to the state oil company in cities including Abha, Najran, and Jazan.
Saudi authorities reported blazes at the oil sites and said women and children were among the wounded. The Houthis wounded 73 people in total. The attacks came after a period of relative stability in the Saudi-led coalition war against the Houthi rebels, which had been ongoing for more than a decade.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio weighed in on the situation, stating that Iran continues to attempt to hit US naval ships. He added that for every such attempt, the US will respond by targeting Iranian assets, specifically mentioning the destruction of tankers.
The Central Command stated that the five tankers destroyed yesterday were part of a shadow network funding the IRGC and its regional proxies. Iran has long supported what it calls an “Axis of Resistance,” which includes the Palestinian group Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Iraqi Shi’ite militias, and the Houthis.
Washington is attempting to increase the flow of oil to world markets by guiding ships through the Strait of Hormuz while simultaneously cutting off Iranian exports with a blockade. The situation presents a difficult dilemma for the shipping industry, where commercial vessels must cross a narrow waterway that is now frequently targeted by missile fire.
The wider war in the Gulf has turned into a test of wills between the US and Iran, with each side hoping that economic pressure from competing blockades will force the other to yield, a dynamic that has been complicated by the breakdown of a ceasefire in the decade-long conflict in Yemen.