The Israeli military said Sunday that Iran launched ballistic missiles toward the southern Jordanian city of Aqaba, warning that the attack could result in projectiles or debris entering Israeli territory.
“There may be spillover into Israeli territory as a result of the fire,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said, adding that air raid sirens would sound if necessary. The military said there were no changes to the Home Front Command’s civilian guidelines.
Initial reports said large explosions were heard over Eilat as interceptor systems attempted to destroy Iranian missiles headed toward nearby Aqaba. Images and videos shared on social media showed plumes of smoke rising over the Red Sea resort city.
The IDF later said it had conducted interceptions outside Israeli territory involving interceptor fragments that could have crossed into Israel. It said fragments subsequently fell in northern Eilat, and no injuries were reported.
Earlier Sunday, Jordan rejected a statement by the US Embassy in Amman that said Jordanian authorities had evacuated Aqaba’s international airport and Red Sea seaport because of what the embassy described as a “specific and credible threat.”
Jordanian government spokesman Mohammad Al-Momani said no evacuation orders had been issued for either facility in the southern port city. Speaking to the state-run Petra news agency, Al-Momani said Jordanian authorities had detected no potential threats to Aqaba in recent hours. Jordan’s state news agency also quoted a government spokesperson as saying no decision had been made to evacuate either the airport or the seaport.
The US Embassy had earlier advised US citizens not to travel to either location, saying Jordanian authorities had evacuated both facilities in response to a “specific and credible threat.”
The developments came as the United States carried out an eighth consecutive night of strikes against Iran after two US troops were killed and a dozen others were injured in a series of strikes on US military bases in Jordan.
