Iranian missiles launched toward U.S. military facilities in the Middle East [AFP=Yonhap News file photo]

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees U.S. military operations against Iran, announced on the 28th (local time) that Iranian forces had launched ballistic missiles toward U.S. military bases in the Middle East.

CENTCOM stated on X (formerly Twitter) that day, "At 5:45 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time today, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) units launched multiple ballistic missiles from Iran in an attempt to surprise-attack U.S. military bases in the Middle East."

It added, "All Iranian missiles were successfully intercepted," and "The U.S. military remains vigilant and is maintaining a high state of readiness."

While CENTCOM did not explicitly specify which country's U.S. military base was targeted, Barak Ravid, a reporter for the U.S. news outlet Axios, cited a U.S. official in a social media post stating that the target was a base in Jordan.

This attack by Iran appears to have jeopardized the brief period of relative calm in the exchange of hostilities, which had focused on dialogue over the past five days.

The U.S. military had been conducting airstrikes against Iran for 13 consecutive days before suspending them on the 24th, and Iran had also ceased retaliatory attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East since then.

During this pause in hostilities, President Donald Trump had stated that talks with Iran were ongoing and expressed optimism about a potential deal, while simultaneously threatening stronger airstrikes if negotiations were to fail.

The reason for the Iranian military's targeted strike on the U.S. base has not yet been determined.

However, in a separate post on X, CENTCOM stated, "On July 28, in Iraq, U.S. forces, alongside the Saudi Arabian military, conducted precision strikes against Iranian-affiliated terrorists who were directed by the IRGC to attack U.S. and Saudi energy infrastructure."

It further explained, "U.S. and Saudi fighter jets struck several terrorist logistics and weapons bases across eastern Iraq over the past 72 hours as a robust response to more than 30 drone attacks directed by the IRGC."

The exact sequence of events between the Iranian ballistic missile attack and the U.S.-Saudi precision strikes against pro-Iranian militias in Iraq has not been confirmed.

However, given the current circumstances, it is possible that Iran's new ballistic missile attack is a retaliation for the strikes on Iranian "proxy forces" mentioned by the U.S. and Saudi militaries.

CENTCOM warned, "Between February and April of this year, Iranian-linked terrorist militias in Iraq attempted over 600 attacks against U.S. citizens and facilities," adding, "The IRGC and its terrorist proxies must cease these attacks to avoid further U.S. military response."