Iran responds to United States attacks with new bombings

WashingtonThe cross-threats between the United States and Iran are flaring up again in the Middle East with new bursts that have set off anti-aircraft alarms in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Iraq. After the US military fulfilled Donald Trump's promise to "hit hard" Tehran, the ayatollahs retaliated this morning with a hail of missiles against US positions in these countries in the region.

The US Marine Corps base in Jordan, Camp Titin, has been the target of an "intense ballistic missile attack", as explained by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran to the Iranian agency Tasnim, which described the new episode as a "decisive operation" as a "response to the US enemy". The corps claims to have killed a large number of US forces —Washington says it has no record of any casualties so far— and states that it has destroyed US military equipment in attacks against US bases in Jordan.

Jordanian forces have reported intercepting 10 ballistic missiles fired from Iran, but the number of injured, or whether there has been significant damage, has not yet been confirmed. In Kuwait, the army has confirmed that it also had to respond to different missile and drone attacks, while in Bahrain, France-Presse agency reporters have heard anti-aircraft sirens. The Revolutionary Guard also claims to have attacked a US base in Erbil, Iraq.

Iran has claimed responsibility for the new attacks against US bases as a response to Washington's latest aggressions against its positions. On Sunday morning, the US Army's Central Command (Centcom) had reactivated the crossfire by bombing the Iranian island of Larak, located in the Strait of Hormuz. In another statement, Centcom also stated this morning that it had "successfully" completed a wave of attacks against Iranian military targets.

The military command, based in Florida, has not specified the location of these new targets. "U.S. forces struck targets of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including air defense sites, radar systems, maritime assets and facilities, mine-laying capabilities, and communication sites," it said in its latest statement published on X. The Pentagon speaks only of military targets, but according to Iranian state television, at least four people have been killed and 35 seriously injured in one of the attacks, which hit a wedding in Sirik County.

In a post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump had warned the ayatollahs that if they retaliated, there would be a new wave of reprisals. "If the failed nation of Iran retaliates for this very justified attack, it will be hit much harder and on a higher level, but this will not be the biggest attack of all: that one is still waiting, and when it's over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!" the Republican had written, once again hinting at a possible total destruction of the country.

In a subsequent post, the leader denied seeking to continue negotiating with the Iranian government. "I couldn't care less if they sign an agreement they see as worthless or not," he declared on his social network. In his opinion, Tehran "is only delaying the inevitable," in the face of a national economy that is "totally collapsing." Following this supposed collapse, the American president questions "when the Iranian people will rise up to fight".

In a post on the X network, the United States Central Command (Centcom) assures that the attacks on Tuesday occurred "following recent attack attempts by the Revolutionary Guard against commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and against U.S. military personnel deployed in the region." According to the same publication, the attacks were directed against targets of the revolutionary guard corps, but according to Iranian state television, at least four people were killed and 35 seriously injured in one of the attacks, which hit a wedding in Sirik County.

The resumption of crossfire

Although attacks between the two sides have been a constant despite signing a truce in June, the context in which they are occurring is quite significant. In the last month, neither Washington nor Tehran had attacked each other directly. But on Sunday, the US military marked a new turning point and bombed the island of Larak.

According to Centcom, that attack served to destroy two platforms with which, always according to the US version, Iran had the capacity to launch rockets loaded with sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, where Washington has stated for weeks that it is working to remove all mines and allow traffic to resume normally. A milestone that, although some ships are circulating, has not yet been achieved.

From Bishkek, where the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is being held, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had shown himself willing to resume the diplomatic path if the United States complies with the commitment acquired in the Memorandum of Understanding signed in June in Versailles. Meanwhile, from the G-20 summit being held in North Carolina, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had announced that in the coming days he will apply new sanctions as part of the economic war that Washington has launched against Tehran.

Bad timing at the Pentagon

The resumption of crossfire between Iran and the US comes amid a growing power vacuum within the Pentagon's top ranks. This Monday, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll formally submitted his resignation to the White House. Driscoll, who was considered a potential successor to the current Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, has stepped down after months of tension with his superior.

Driscoll's departure adds to a long list of casualties the Pentagon has accumulated in recent months, since last April when Hegseth dismissed the Chief of Staff of the Army, Randy George. General George was a key figure for the military command of US forces during one of their most active periods since the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He was also an ally of Driscoll, with whom he shared much better rapport than with the Secretary of Defense.

Since August, the vacancy to lead the Army's Transformation and Training Command, responsible for overseeing the replenishment of Patriot missiles and other critical systems for the army, also remains unfilled.