On the night of July 29–30, 2026, the United States military struck dozens of targets inside Iran belonging to a group called the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC. The IRGC is a powerful branch of Iran's military that reports directly to Iran's top leader. The U.S. considers it a sponsor of terrorism.

The American strikes hit military command centers, missile and drone facilities, and coastal defense sites, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command (the part of the U.S. military that oversees the Middle East). The Pentagon did not say exactly which locations or units were hit.

The strikes came in response to an IRGC missile attack on a U.S. military base in Jordan on July 29. The U.S. said Iran had tried to launch a surprise missile attack on American forces in the region. President Donald Trump said Iran would be "hit very hard." The IRGC said on July 30 that it would strike back against the "aggressor."

The scale of the latest U.S. strikes was large. The Jerusalem Post, citing a source, reported that this round of strikes was roughly twice the size of the previous one. Explosions were reported across a wide area of Iran.

Iranian news outlets reported blasts in several locations. Press TV reported explosions in southern Iran. In Hormozgan province, two explosions were heard in the port city of Bandar Abbas, and similar sounds were reported on the islands of Abu Musa, Kish, and Qeshm, according to Tasnim. Three explosions were heard on Qeshm island, and Tasnim reported that residents said a missile struck a residential area, killing a couple and their child. Two people were trapped under rubble after a strike on a residential building in Qeshm's Chah-Tango neighborhood. IRIB, another Iranian outlet, quoted the deputy governor of Hormozgan saying the building was "hit by enemy projectiles" and that rescue operations were underway.

On Kish island, two loud explosions followed a missile strike, but Tasnim reported that the airport and ferry services were still running. A senior Hormozgan official said there were no attacks on the city of Sirik, per the same outlet.

Farther inland, U.S. forces struck Fars province in southwestern Iran, targeting an area near the city of Kazerun, according to Tasnim. In Bushehr province, which is home to Iran's only nuclear power plant, IRIB reported explosions in three cities overnight with no casualties. In Khuzestan province, IRIB quoted a deputy security minister saying U.S. forces targeted "some locations in Abadan." At least seven locations in Ahvaz city were hit, according to IRIB, and Tasnim reported power outages in parts of the city.

The effects spread beyond Iran. Kuwait and Jordan were targeted in suspected Iranian strikes on the morning of July 30. In Kuwait, a building belonging to a Chinese company was hit, killing one worker. Egypt was also targeted in a drone strike the same day.

The IRGC also declared a British airbase — RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, England — a "legitimate target." This came after U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers used the British base to launch missions against Iranian targets, according to a photo caption dated July 25 in an Al Jazeera report.

These strikes are part of what the U.S. military calls Operation "Epic Fury" — an ongoing campaign against Iranian military infrastructure. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on July 24 that the operation's goals are "laser-focused." CENTCOM had announced on July 23 that it had completed its 13th straight night of strikes. Earlier in July, CENTCOM reported hitting about 90 Iranian military targets during operations on July 7–8, and over 80 targets in a separate round on July 7. The White House confirmed that strikes starting July 7 targeted missile launch sites and air defenses inside Iran.

The campaign began with strikes on Iran's nuclear program. The Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant — a facility where Iran enriches uranium for its nuclear program — was hit using 30,000-pound bombs called "massive ordnance penetrators," designed to smash deep underground before detonating. The Department of Defense called the strike "historically successful" and "15 years in the making." Defense Secretary Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine praised the strike on three Iranian nuclear sites. The White House has described the broader conflict as a response to Iran's "decades of terrorism against American citizens," saying Iran and its allies have carried out more than 180 attacks on U.S. forces in the Middle East, wounding more than 180 service members.

The wider picture is one of escalation on both sides, with no announced path toward stopping. Iran's promise to retaliate has already led to strikes on Kuwait, Jordan, and Egypt — countries that were not directly involved in the U.S.-Iran fight. The declaration of a British airbase as a "legitimate target" extends the threat to Europe. With the U.S. in its third week of continuous strikes and Iran actively targeting neighboring states, the conflict keeps getting bigger, not smaller. No publicly known channel exists for either side to step back.