Middle East crisis live: US launches new round of airstrikes to ‘swiftly punish’ Iran after American troops killed

Why This Matters

Key context: <p>Iran’s Revolutionary Guards says two ships have also been involved in ‘accident’ after defying strait of Hormuz warnings as Kuwait reports attack from Tehran</p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/18/iran-attacks-us-allies-in-middle-east-in-second-week-of-renewed-conflict">Two US troops killed and one missing in Jordan after Iranian attacks</a></p></li></ul><p>Jordanian authorities ⁠have not issued any decision ⁠to ​evacuate the airport or ⁠seaport in the city of Aqaba, and have not detected ⁠any potential threats ​in ‌the past ‌hours, the state ‌news agency cited the government spokesperson as saying.</p><p>This denial comes in response to the US embassy in Jordan earlier saying the airport and seaport in Aqaba had been evacuated by Jordanian authorities because of a “specific and credible threat” (see <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/jul/19/middle-east-crisis-live-us-launches-new-round-of-airstrikes-to-swiftly-punish-iran-after-american-troops-killed?page=with%3Ablock-6a5ca1148f0826309aef65a6#block-6a5ca1148f0826309aef65a6">this post</a> for more details).</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2026/jul/19/middle-east-crisis-live-us-launches-new-round-of-airstrikes-to-swiftly-punish-iran-after-american-troops-killed">Continue reading...</a> This development from The Guardian highlights ongoing changes in the sector.