🚀🛩 Missile & drone attacks on US bases in Jordan show Iran has learned to penetrate American air defenses

A series of recent Iranian strikes on US military installations in the Middle East has raised questions about the Islamic Republic’s growing military capabilities.

Improved ballistic missiles?

🔴 Iranian missiles again targeted US sites in Jordan on July 19. Two days earlier, an Iranian strike on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base killed two US soldiers, left another missing, and injured four additional service members. Sunday marked the fifth attack on US forces in Jordan in just over a week.

🔴 Earlier, on July 12, Iran targeted Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan, destroying the base’s command-and-control center and MQ-9 drone hangars, according to Iranian media. In the early hours of July 13–14, Iranian attacks also struck King Faisal Air Base, wounding up to five US troops. Another strike on a base in eastern Jordan damaged “a significant number” of US Black Hawk helicopters, The New York Times reported. Over the course of the week, Iranian attacks left dozens of US personnel wounded

🔴 Iran has developed missiles designed to evade US air defenses by traveling at extreme speeds and maneuvering during descent, US officials told The Wall Street Journal.

🔴 Iran reportedly used mixed salvos of Zolfaghar ballistic missiles, traveling at speeds of up to Mach 7, alongside drones in an attack on Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan on July 12, The Telegraph reported. Recent upgrades have reportedly given many Iranian missiles access to China’s encrypted BeiDou-3 satellite navigation system, making them far more difficult and costly to intercept, the newspaper claimed

🔴 The IRGC's footage, released earlier this week, appeared to show the Zolfaghar, Fateh-110, Kheibar Shekan, and Fattah ballistic missiles launched against US military installations.

Why is Iran targeting Jordan?

Jordan has taken on new significance for the US since the start of the Iran war, as the Pentagon moved a number of US troops from Bahrain, the UAE and Qatar to locations in Jordan and Israel, according to the NYT. This role has grown even more important during the US-Israeli military campaign, as some Gulf states have restricted the US from stationing troops and operating aircraft from their territories.

Jordan has long been valued by the US military for its strategic location, allowing American air operations across Syria, Iraq and the wider region.

But Iran’s latest strikes on US military bases in Jordan could represent a “shaping operation” aimed at degrading air defenses ahead of a renewed attack on Israel, The National suggests. While US forces are believed to be the primary target, the publication argues that Iran may also be deliberately targeting Jordan’s air defense infrastructure. Jordan sits directly along the main missile and drone route toward Israel and has intercepted large numbers of projectiles heading toward the country in recent years.

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