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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Michigan, U.S., July 27, 2026.
Evan Vucci | Reuters
President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he will order heavy strikes on Iran in retaliation for its "surprise attack" on U.S. forces overnight, which punctured a multi-day pause in fighting in the Middle East.
"We'll be hitting them hard. They're going to get a beating," Trump told a Fox News reporter.
Iran targeted American forces in the Middle East with ballistic missiles late Tuesday stateside, U.S. Central Command said, raising tensions in the region again after the warring sides had briefly halted hostilities.
Centcom in a post on X said the attack originated from Iran, but all missiles were intercepted. "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."
While the U.S. military command did not specify where the missiles were aimed at, Axios reported the attack was directed at a U.S. base in Jordan, citing U.S. officials.
In a subsequent statement posted on X, Centcom said U.S. and Saudi forces struck "multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites" in eastern Iraq Tuesday stateside, retaliating against more than 30 drone attacks in the past three days by "Iran-aligned terrorists."
Saudi Arabia's Defense Ministry said the strikes were carried out in coordination with Centcom, and added the kingdom does not seek escalation, but will respond to any aggression it faces.
Riyadh said earlier that drones launched from Iraq by "Iran-affiliated terrorist militias" attempted to target petroleum facilities in Saudi Arabia.
The Iran-backed Iraqi Mobilization Forces said in a statement later on Tuesday that at least 20 of its members had been killed in the strikes and 32 had been wounded.
Oil prices rise as fighting resumes
Tensions have escalated after a two-day pause in hostilities between Washington and Tehran, sending oil surging, after prices declined for three straight days.
Trump had set aside plans to escalate the war against Iran amid worries over diminishing stockpiles of Patriot interceptors and other air defense munitions in the Middle East, The New York Times had reported. Trump had dismissed concerns over stockpile depletion.
Iran had indicated it would stop carrying out attacks as long as the U.S. refrained from striking, Reuters had reported on Sunday, citing a senior Iranian official.
Separately, the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported "suspicious activity" in the Red Sea in a post on X.
The agency said the master of a tanker reported hearing an explosion whilst transiting the southern Red Sea, without giving more details. The incident was reported on Monday, while the advisory was issued on Tuesday.
While it is not confirmed if the reported incident was perpetrated by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, it is known that the rebels had claimed to have attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the area last week, with Saudi Arabia retaliating against the rebels.
The Bab-el Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea is a critical export channel for Saudi oil diverted from the Strait of Hormuz and a choke point for commercial shipping traffic.
Experts have warned that a closure of Bab el-Mandeb would block in those barrels, exacerbating the oil disruption triggered by Iran's attacks on tankers in Hormuz.
