Jordan, one of the Middle East’s most stable countries, is under severe strain after Iran targeted the kingdom, along with Kuwait, Iraq and Bahrain, for hosting US military bases. Iran launched hundreds of drone and missile attacks against Jordan, a nation bordered by Iraq to the east, Syria to the northeast, Israel and the West Bank to the west, and Saudi Arabia to the south. A stagnating economy and volatility in the West Bank, driven by tensions between Israeli settlers and Palestinians, add further pressure on the country.
Jordan’s Foreign Minister: “We Are a Sovereign Country”
The Hashemite monarchy has remained a close US ally throughout the region’s turbulent history. That relationship with Washington has made Jordan’s military bases a target of repeated Iranian strikes. Jordan has pushed back. Speaking in Vienna last Thursday, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi defended his country’s right to make its own decisions.
“Iran has been attacking us and many other countries in the region long before even this war started,” he said, referring to Iranian “meddling in internal affairs” and other clandestine efforts. “So we do not buy their argument. We are a sovereign country. We were not a party to this war.”
A Kingdom Under Economic Strain
King Abdullah II faces one of the most difficult periods since he took the throne in 1999. Renewed hostilities in the West Bank could push more Palestinian refugees into Jordan. At the same time, Jordan was already contending with Iranian interference in its domestic affairs before the war began.
Jordan’s public debt stood at roughly 108 to 109% of GDP on a gross basis at the end of 2025, or 82 to 84% on a net basis excluding social security holdings. Projections show only a gradual decline in these ratios into 2026. The government’s overall budget deficit, including grants, sits at around 4.6 to 5% of GDP, with a primary deficit of 1.4 to 1.6% of GDP.
Jordan remains a constitutional monarchy in which the king holds final authority over key national policy. With public finances already strained, the kingdom faces pressure to secure external financing as instability continues in the surrounding region.
Competing Claims Over the Sirik Strike
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said its strikes on Arab neighbours were retaliation for a US attack on the town of Sirik, on the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian officials say that attack hit a wedding, killing four people, including a child, and injuring dozens. The chairman of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee posted on social media following the reported strike: “Make no mistake: these crimes will not go unpunished.”
The US military has denied targeting civilians in the strikes. “We’re aware of the reports, which originated from Iranian state media. The US military never targets civilians, unlike the IRGC,” CENTCOM spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said in a statement.
Regional Allies Condemn Iran’s Attacks
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) called Iran’s latest strikes on Middle East bases “heinous” in a statement Wednesday. “These Iranian attacks represent a blatant violation of the sovereignty of states and a direct threat to their security and stability,” GCC Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed AlBudaiwi said. The statement added that GCC member states “stand firmly alongside the Kingdom of Bahrain, the State of Kuwait, and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan” in efforts to protect their sovereignty and security.
Uncertainty at Prince Hassan Air Base
The IRGC claims it killed pilots and flight maintenance crew members in an overnight attack on Jordan’s Prince Hassan Air Base, according to Sky News. It remains unclear whether any pilots killed were American, and the Pentagon has not confirmed any American casualties in that attack.
