US strikes Iranian launchers in Hormuz; Iran fires at bases in Jordan

Washington,UPDATED: Aug 31, 2026 07:56 IST

US forces struck Iranian rocket launchers in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, ending a month-long lull in the fighting in a war that has continued intermittently for more than six months. Iran quickly vowed retaliation, calling it a deadly attack, and later said it had responded by firing ballistic missiles at US bases in Jordan.

The exchange marked a fresh escalation in a conflict that has threatened the wider region since it began on February 28. Jordan's armed forces said they intercepted eight missiles that entered the country's airspace early on Monday, while commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained at reduced levels.

Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for the US Central Command, said forces from Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps were seen preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the strait. The US military said it had completed clearing sea mines from the strait's international shipping routes last week.

Semiofficial Iranian news outlets reported sounds of explosions near Larak island in the strait. In a statement carried by Iran's state broadcaster, the Guard said there had been "the martyrdom and injury of several of our fighters and compatriots." Later, Iranian state television broadcast what it said were ballistic missiles being fired by Iran at US bases in Jordan in response to the American strikes.

The US attack came days after the Trump administration said it would focus on stepping up economic pressure, rather than military action, in an attempt to end the war with Iran. The strategy is centred on threats to punish any country or entity that continues to do business with Tehran.

A Guard spokesperson, Gen. Hossein Mohebi, said in a statement carried by Iranian media that Sunday's attack was a "fatal mistake by the Trump regime during the economic war" and that the enemy would pay the consequences militarily and economically.

The shift towards sanctions comes as the US administration weighs concerns over reduced munitions stockpiles after months of war, and questions over military readiness in other parts of the world. President Donald Trump said on August 1 that he would hold off on new strikes at the urging of Gulf allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, after the US military announced a "heavy wave of strikes" on July 29 on dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets, including coastal surveillance and defence sites.

Trump said last week that he was "not in a hurry" to get Iran back to the negotiating table, while continuing to argue that the country's leadership was under pressure. But appointments to Iran's senior security leadership over the past month have signalled defiance in Tehran after decades of sanctions and a lack of tolerance for dissent at home. Trump has also repeatedly said that the US and Israeli campaign had badly damaged Iran's navy and air force. Iranian officials have said the country has suffered USD 270 billion in direct and indirect damage, while Israeli strikes in the opening weeks of the war wiped out much of the government's leadership structure.

Even so, Iran has retained leverage through attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, where relatively few ships carrying oil and liquefied natural gas are now willing to pass. Iran still has enough drones and missiles to target vessels moving through the waterway, through which 20 per cent of the world's oil normally flows.

Oil prices rose on Sunday after the US attack. The price of a barrel of US oil rose 1.8 per cent to USD 84.94, while Brent crude rose 1.9 per cent to USD 89.79. Tehran has continued to say that even after it works out a management plan for the strait with Oman, the US cannot use it unless it fulfils its obligations under the memorandum of understanding signed in mid-June.

Trump has repeatedly said that the "Strait of Hormuz is open" and said 24 vessels passed through last week. But that remains far below the roughly 130 vessels that used the route daily before the war began. Earlier on Sunday, a multinational coalition overseen by the US Navy said commercial traffic through the strait was still at "reduced levels."

A monitoring agency run by the British military also said an unknown projectile hit a tanker on Saturday north of Khasab in Oman, in the strait. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization said there were no casualties or environmental impact and cited unspecified military authorities. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

The US military said that as of Sunday it had redirected 83 commercial vessels and disabled three under its blockade of Iranian ports. With the latest US strike, Iran's retaliation and disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, the conflict has moved back into open confrontation after weeks in which Washington had signalled greater reliance on economic pressure.

With PTI Inputs

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