On Saturday, the US military reported dead soldiers in its own ranks for the first time since the early days of the Iran War.Image: keystone
The US military has announced retaliatory strikes against the Iranian Revolutionary Guard after the deaths of two of its soldiers. Meanwhile, the pressure on Trump is likely to continue to increase. The latest developments in the Middle East.
Jul 19, 2026, 05:26Jul 19, 2026, 05:26
After the death of two US soldiers as a result of Iranian shelling and the night-long US bombings in Iran, both sides are vowing revenge – threatening a dangerous spiral of escalation. The US military began new air strikes during the night, as the Centcom regional command announced on X. Among other things, they aimed to “quickly punish” the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, who had carried out attacks on American soldiers in Jordan the previous night.
Today at 6 pm ET, US forces began launching new airstrikes against Iran at the Commander in Chief’s direction. The strikes are designed to further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard…
— US Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 18, 2026
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Moschtaba Khamenei previously threatened to take revenge. Khamenei, who has never appeared publicly before, said in a statement: “As the American enemy now seeks warmongering, incurring even greater costs and inflicting even greater disgrace, he should know that the beloved Iranian people and the resistance front have unforgettable lessons in store for him,” it said.
So far 16 dead US soldiers
It was the first time since the early days of the Iran War, which the US and Israel launched together on February 28, that the US military reported deaths from Iranian fire. The two soldiers died in Jordan on Friday as US forces and allies defended themselves against Iranian missile and drone attacks, Centcom said. Another soldier is still missing. The officially known number of US soldiers killed in the war against Iran rises to 16.
Iran has aligned itself with US defense systems and is firing missiles that fly at extremely high speeds and can maneuver during their dive, the Wall Street Journal quoted US officials as saying. Iran’s ability to hit sensitive targets is fueling fears that Tehran is receiving support from China or Russia in targeting.
Trump: “very sad thing”
The pressure on US President Donald Trump, who is already confronted with discontent in his own country due to the unpopular war there, is likely to increase further with the deaths of US soldiers. The US broadcaster NewsNation quoted him after a conversation about the deaths as saying that it was “a very sad thing.” “We don’t like to see that,” he said and reiterated that Iran should not have nuclear weapons.
According to the Ministry of Health there, at least 50 people have died in Iran since the new escalation with the USA. More than 500 other people were injured in the latest attacks by the US military. The government in Tehran generally only reports on civilian casualties. There is no official data on losses among our own armed forces.
Reports in Iran about US missile attack near Gheshm
Meanwhile, the Tasnim news agency, which is close to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, reported early this morning local time that at least six rockets had struck areas on the edge of the island of Gheshm in the Persian Gulf. There were initially no details about this.
The U.S. military had previously said another goal of the new attacks was to further weaken Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, important for global trade in oil, gas and fertilizer. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kasem Gharibabadi said, according to the Fars news agency, that the framework agreement agreed with the USA in mid-June had been suspended and no longer felt bound to it. According to NewsNation, Trump said he “couldn’t care less.”
It was agreed in the agreement that a final deal to end the war would be negotiated within 60 days. The Strait of Hormuz should also be opened. A ceasefire had also been in effect since the beginning of April, but Trump himself recently declared it to be over. Things have escalated again since the beginning of July.
Emirates call for an “immediate stop to the escalation”
The United Arab Emirates is calling for “an immediate end to hostilities and a rapid return to the negotiating table.” Without mentioning the USA and Iran by name, the Emirates Foreign Ministry called on Platform
Israeli Iran expert Danny Citrinowicz wrote on X that it was becoming increasingly clear “that events are gradually getting out of control.” Given the virtually non-existent trust between Washington and Tehran, the increasingly exhausted mediators and a dialogue that is primarily conducted through military strikes, “the risk of further escalation is now greater than the prospects of de-escalation.”
Expert warns of the conflict expanding
The combination of Trump’s actions and Tehran’s show of force during the funeral of the slain head of state Ali Khamenei appears to have reinforced the belief among key members of the Revolutionary Guard that they not only have sufficient domestic political support, but also have little choice but to intensify their response to the US attacks, Citrinowicz wrote.
Under these circumstances, it will be extremely difficult to “keep the escalation spiral under control,” the expert wrote and warned of an expansion of the conflict, into which the Gulf states allied with Washington could be drawn even more directly. Unless something significant changes soon, the conflict is heading into a “far more dangerous phase” that could become increasingly difficult for both sides to contain. (sda/dpa)