US President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that the US would strike Iran “very hard" after Iran attacked US bases in Jordan overnight.
“We are going to hit them very hard. I can say that because there is very little they can do about it," he told reporters in the Oval Office.
"We're going to be hitting them very hard, because it’s our turn to hit them. They know it’s coming, they’re asking us not to do it. They tried shooting last night…we had five rockets shot going 8,500 mph, and all five rockets were knocked down to the ground - but they nevertheless took a shot, so it's our turn," Trump stated.
Earlier, Trump told Fox News, "We are going to beat the ****ing **** out of them."
He added, "We'll be hitting them hard. They are going to get a beating."
The President described the missile launches as a surprise attack, adding that US forces had just minutes to intercept the incoming missile barrage.
On Tuesday night, Iran launched missiles targeting locations in Jordan, for the first time in several days, marking the first Iranian missile attack on a US base in the region since Trump decided to pause strikes against Iran this past Friday.
Later that night, CENTCOM announced that, together with the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces, it conducted precision strikes in Iraq against Iran-aligned terrorists that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) directed to attack US forces and Saudi energy infrastructure.
“US and Saudi fighter aircraft struck multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq in a strong response to over 30 IRGC-directed aerial drone attacks in the last 72 hours," said CENTCOM.
It added, “The unwarranted attacks against US forces were not successful."