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Aqaba strike and casualties
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched its 21st wave of ballistic missile and drone strikes Monday morning, hitting U.S. military aircraft at Jordan’s King Hussein International Airport in Aqaba while also targeting two major U.S. installations in Kuwait.
“Israeli military says Iranian missiles launched toward Jordanian city of Aqaba Sun 19 Jul 2026 at 11:25pm , updatedMon 20 Jul 2026 at 9:37am In short: The Israeli military says it has identified missiles launched from Iran towards the Jordanian city of Aqaba, adjacent to Israeli territory”
Jordan’s military stated its air defense systems intercepted three of four incoming Iranian missiles, with the fourth landing in a remote area, and the result was confirmed by IRGC Statement No. 31 and corroborated by Jordan’s own military statement.
The Independent reported that at least two US service members were killed in action in Jordan while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks.
BBC said two US troops were killed and one remains missing after Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in Jordan on Friday, and it quoted Centcom saying “Two US service members in Jordan were killed in action” and “one service member is currently missing.”
Conflicting claims and travel
The IRGC claimed it struck U.S. military C-17 transport aircraft and P-8 command-and-control aircraft at Jordan’s Aqaba Airport with ballistic missiles, causing heavy damage to several of them, but the Tech Times account said neither the U.S. military nor Jordanian authorities confirmed those specific damage claims as of Monday morning.
Jordan’s government spokesperson Mohammad Al-Momani told Reuters that “The airport and port are operating normally,” even as the U.S. Embassy said Aqaba’s airport and seaport were evacuated because of a “specific and credible threat,” according to the Tech Times and NewsNation accounts.
The Independent framed the situation as travel risk, saying the UK government is currently advising against all but essential travel to that area and warning that “the situation remains unpredictable” with Iran having carried out further attacks on Jordan in recent weeks.
ABC reported that Jordan summoned Iran’s charge d'affaires over what it called “unjustified and blatant Iranian attacks,” while Jordan also announced via its state news agency that it had shot down three missiles and that a fourth fell in a remote area with no injuries or “material damage.”
Escalation, strikes, and what’s next
The BBC said on Saturday night the U.S. launched another round of air strikes against Iran at President Donald Trump’s direction, for the eighth night in a row, to degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and to “swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces who launched attacks against American service members in Jordan last night.”
“Two US troops killed and one missing after Iranian attack in Jordan Two US service members were killed and one remains missing after Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in Jordan on Friday, military officials said”
Tech Times described the conflict trajectory as continuing despite counter-strikes, citing Iran’s Foreign Ministry declaring the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding in a “crisis stage” and noting that Iran disabled two oil tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz without IRGC permission on Monday.
NewsNation said the United States retaliated to the killing of two American service members by launching more airstrikes on Iran on Sunday, and it quoted CENTCOM saying its assets targeted Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and communications networks.
In Kuwait and Bahrain, NewsNation reported sirens after the Kuwaiti army said it was intercepting Iranian missile fire and drone attacks, while ABC said Kuwait authorities accused Iran of hitting a power and water facility and that Bahrain also accused Tehran of targeting civilian infrastructure, keeping the regional stakes tied to shipping and civilian systems.
