Iran launches surprise attack on US base as multiple ballistic missiles intercepted over Jordan

Iran launched a surprise attack on a US base in Jordan on Tuesday night in the first military move between the two nations since President Trump paused strikes.

US forces said the missiles from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps were intercepted as tensions continued to escalate between the countries.

The attack took place at approximately 5:45pm ET on US forces based in the Middle East, US Central Command confirmed.  

‘All Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted. US forces remain vigilant and at a high state of readiness,’ they said in a statement. 

The US and Iran had experienced a brief period of calm, during which neither announced attacks for days following weeks of escalation over the Strait of Hormuz. 

The Persian Gulf waterway is a narrow chokepoint through which 20 percent of the world’s oil normally flows.

Iran effectively closed the strait when the war began by firing at freighters and tankers off its coast or threatening, too.

Following the signing of an interim ceasefire deal in June, a battle for control over the strait has erupted. 

Iran demanded that ships use a route near its coastline and said it can potentially charge fees. 

Ships were increasingly navigating a southern route along the coast of Oman under a US overwatch operation when Iran attacked some vessels.

Earlier Tuesday, Saudi Arabia said that it shot down drones fired by Iran-backed militias in Iraq for a second day, while Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed to have forced a Saudi oil tanker to turn around as part of their self-styled blockade of the kingdom.

The attacks ended a period of calm between the United States and Iran, neither of which had announced attacks for days following weeks of escalation over the Strait of Hormuz.

The attack comes the same day Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched a charm offensive on President Donald Trump, working top Cabinet members in a place of worship as anxiety grows that Israel could move to widen the war with Iran. 

Netanyahu said he had an ‘excellent’ meeting with Trump at the White House on Tuesday, their first sitdown since launching a joint war against Iran that offered Netanyahu a chance to smooth out strains in their relationship.

The closed-door meeting lasted nearly an hour and a half and was ‘positive and productive,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. 

The White House did not immediately offer more details.

This is a developing story.