Air raid sirens blared in Bahrain and other Gulf states as the struggle for control of the Strait of Hormuz continued after US forces conducted a ninth day of air strikes on targets around Iran.
Tensions increased over the weekend in the Gulf after the deaths of three US soldiers -- and possibly a fourth -- were announced.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the latest wave of strikes was aimed at degrading Iran's ability to threaten vessels transiting the strait, a strategic waterway that usually sees about one-fifth of the world's oil and gas transit.
President Donald Trump said the attacks also honored US service members killed in recent days.
"We hit them very hard again tonight," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding the strikes were carried out "in honor of" what he said were "probably three great patriots."
A day earlier, CENTCOM disclosed the first combat losses in the Iran war since March, saying two service members had been killed and another was missing during defensive operations in Jordan.
In its latest statement, the military said that "after a thorough search, US military personnel found unidentified remains at the location earlier today [in Jordan]. An examination process to verify the remains is ongoing," raising the possibility that the remains were of the missing service member.
That statement did not specify where in Jordan the attack occurred. Identification of the victims was not provided pending notification of family members.
The main site of US operations on the territory of the Middle East ally is the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, about 80 kilometers outside Amman. US forces also have operations at the Prince Hassan Air Base and at other military facilities in Jordan.
The Wall Street Journal and others, citing sources, reported that the strike occurred at the Muwaffaq Salti base, which US forces have used to launch air strikes against Iran.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on July 20 that it had targeted US aircraft at Jordan's Aqaba airport with ballistic missiles. It also claimed it struck out at US military assets and equipment at Kuwait's Al-Adiri camp and Ali Al Salem Air Base, and in Syria.
Bahrain's Interior Ministry also said air raid sirens were activated on its territory. The island kingdom hosts the US Fifth Fleet and has been targeted by Iranian strikes in recent days.
US forces remain operating in Iraq for training and anti-terror purposes, although numbers are down significantly from the 170,000 at the height of the Iraq war. US and Iraqi officials have said the US troops are scheduled to fully depart in September.
The newly reported deaths bring the total of known fatalities among US military personnel since the start of the US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 to 17, with all but one listed as combat deaths. The total does not include the missing service member in Jordan.
Iran, meanwhile, has said that 50 people were killed in recent attacks on the country, with more than 500 injured. The report could not be independently verified.
Despite the outbreak of fighting after a temporary truce was reached last month to give time for talks on a full peace settlement, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told a news conference on July 20 that diplomatic "exchanges" have continued between Washington and Tehran.
"We have been informed by mediators, we have received messages -- without going into details -- but the main point is that the diplomatic apparatus has been active in recent days and ideas have been conveyed to us by certain mediators," he said.
