Iran’s Surprise Attack Foiled by US Forces
A new round of missile attacks by Iranian forces marked a sharp escalation in tensions with the United States on Tuesday, ending several days of relative calm and prompting renewed warnings from U.S. military officials and President Donald Trump.
According to The Wall Street Journal, all of the missiles launched by Iran were successfully intercepted, preventing reported damage or casualties. As of Tuesday evening, officials had not confirmed the precise location of the attack, although Axios reported that the intended target was a U.S. military installation in Jordan.
U.S. Central Command announced the attack in a statement posted on social media.
"At 5:45 p.m. ET today, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces launched multiple ballistic missiles from Iran in an attempted surprise attack on U.S. forces based in the Middle East," CENTCOM said.
The command added that American personnel remained on alert.
"U.S. forces remain vigilant and at a high state of readiness."
The missile launch followed another series of attacks earlier in the day involving Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. Saudi Arabia reported that drones had been launched toward its energy infrastructure by Iranian proxy groups operating in Iraq. Saudi air defenses intercepted the drones before they reached their targets.
At 5:45 p.m. ET today, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces launched multiple ballistic missiles from Iran in an attempted surprise attack on U.S. forces based in the Middle East. All Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted. U.S. forces remain vigilant and at a high…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 28, 2026
In response, CENTCOM said U.S. and Saudi military forces carried out joint strikes against facilities used by the militias.
"U.S. and Saudi fighter aircraft struck multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq in a strong response to over 30 IRGC-directed aerial drone attacks in the last 72 hours," the command said.
CENTCOM also warned that continued attacks by Iranian-backed groups would draw additional military action.
"The IRGC and its terrorist proxies must cease these attacks to avoid further U.S. military response."
The military noted that attacks linked to Iran have remained persistent throughout the year.
"From February through April 2026, there were more than 600 attempted attacks on U.S. citizens and facilities by Iran-aligned terrorist militias in Iraq," CENTCOM said.
Officials did not immediately clarify whether the strikes against militia targets occurred before or after Iran's ballistic missile launch, leaving the exact sequence of events uncertain.
The renewed hostilities came shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded meetings with President Trump in Washington. According to officials, the discussions were described as positive and focused heavily on the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
The latest exchange of fire also follows a brief pause in direct military activity that began last Friday. During that period, Trump publicly warned that the lull would not last indefinitely if Iran failed to reach an agreement with the United States.
"They know I'm going to do that if they don't make a deal," Trump told Fox News on Tuesday.
The president described the scope of potential U.S. military action if negotiations collapse.
"The bridges are going to be gone, literally in less than—I would say in two hours, most of the bridges, the major bridges will all be gone, and the power plants in one day," he said.
Trump also reiterated that preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains the central objective of any long-term agreement.
"I just want very simply—they cannot have a nuclear weapon. Very simple," Trump said. "And they've agreed to that. Essentially, we have to get them to, you know, make it formal."