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Iran batters US bases in Jordan, UAE in retaliation for strike on isle
Iran launched barrages of missile and drones at US military assets in the Middle East on Monday to retaliate an American strike on an island in the Strait of Hormuz, the first exchange of fire for over a month in a war that has engulfed the region.
More than six months into the conflict, the two sides remain at an impasse, with Iran keeping the strategic strait shut and the United States persisting with a naval blockade of Iranian ports and vessels.
The US had signaled a pivot to economic pressure in place of military action, but on Sunday claimed it attacked Iranian rocket launchers on the small island of Larak to prevent Tehran planting mines in the strategic shipping lane.
“US forces took limited, precise action against IRGC minelaying forces posing an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz,” the US military’s Central Command wrote on X.
Iran’s Revolution Guards Corps said they responded by striking two US air bases with ballistic missiles in Washington-allied Jordan, causing “heavy damage”.
Jordan’s army said it had intercepted eight missiles, without stating their origin.
Iran also said it targeted US personnel at an air base in the United Arab Emirates and shot down an American drone over Hormuz.
The exchange of fire between the United States and Iran came at a time when hostilities had been subsiding.
Economic pressure
In recent weeks, the administration of US President Donald Trump had prioritized “economic warfare” over military action.
But the militaries of the two sides remain vying for control of the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran having blocked the passage of commercial ships since the war began.
One-fifth of the world’s oil passed through the waterway before the US and Israel triggered the war with strikes on Iran on February 28.
Trump insists the US navy has “total control” of the conduit and has even called it US territory, with Washington last week claiming it had completed clearing explosives from the waterway.
Iran has rejected the US claims of control of the energy chokepoint.
Iran’s leaders have remained defiant in the face of US pressure, with President Masoud Pezeshkian saying Monday that “we are not seeking war, but we will deliver a decisive response to the aggressors”.
Legitimate right to retaliate
Iran’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the US attack on Larak as violation of Iran’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity, saying it exercised its legitimate right to retaliate.
In a statement, the ministry said the American attack killed two Iranian servicemen and injured several others including civilians.
It reiterated that the US attack on the island was a clear violation of the United Nations Charter, and urged the UN Security Council and the UN secretary general to fulfill their responsibilities in preserving international peace and security and holding the aggressor accountable.
Diplomatic efforts, spearheaded by mediators including Pakistan and Qatar, have tried for months to bring an end to the war.
While a ceasefire was agreed in April and a memorandum of understanding toward a final peace deal was signed in June, no agreement has been forthcoming, and Washington has since declared “economic warfare” against Tehran.