Iran Fires Missiles Toward Aqaba, Explosions Heard Near Eilat

Sirens sounded in Jordan and explosions were reported near Eilat, Israel, following missile launches from Iran targeting the Jordanian city of Aqaba, which borders Israel. The IDF spokesperson confirmed the missile launches from Iran toward Aqaba and warned of possible spillover effects into Israeli territory, potentially triggering alerts in southern Israel. It remains unclear whether the explosions heard in Eilat were caused by missile interceptions.

The IDF instructed residents to enter protected spaces if alerts are activated and remain there until further notice, although there have been no changes yet to the Home Front Command’s guidelines. Approximately an hour before the missile launches, the U.S. Embassy in Jordan issued an unusual security warning advising American citizens to avoid travel to Aqaba’s international airport and seaport due to a likely targeted security threat. The embassy urged Americans to follow Jordanian security authorities' instructions.

Jordanian officials denied reports of evacuations at Aqaba’s airport and seaport, with a Jordanian source telling Al Jazeera that the claims of facility evacuations were false. Shortly after these denials, the Iranian missile fire toward Aqaba occurred.