Jordan was attacked by Iran this weekend as the Iran war restarted, with Iranian missiles striking housing for U.S. troops at an air base in Jordan and killing two American soldiers, according to reporting cited during a PBS NewsHour interview Monday night.
Marwan Muasher, former deputy prime minister and foreign minister of Jordan who now serves as vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, offered perspective from Amman on how the conflict is affecting his country and broader regional allies. The Wall Street Journal reported that Iranian missiles struck facilities housing U.S. personnel at a Jordanian air base over the weekend.
"Naturally, people are concerned," Muasher said during the interview. "We are concerned about the continuation of the war. We are concerned about the hits that took place in Jordan."
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive analysts and regional experts aligned with Democratic foreign policy circles have echoed Muasher's concerns about the economic toll on allied nations. Critics within the party have argued that military strikes alone cannot achieve U.S. objectives in Iran, pointing to statements from administration officials acknowledging that downgrading Iranian nuclear capability has already been accomplished.
"The countries of the region are going to have to deal with Iran," Muasher observed during the interview. "Iran also is not making this easy by continuing hits." He added that any political solution would be made more difficult without a shift in approach. Progressive foreign policy voices have similarly called for renewed diplomatic engagement, arguing that sustained military pressure risks destabilizing key partners like Jordan while failing to produce a durable settlement.
What the Right Is Saying
Republican defense hawks have defended the military campaign as necessary to counter Iranian aggression and protect U.S. personnel deployed in the region. Supporters of the administration's approach argue that Iran initiated hostilities by striking allied territory and targeting American troops, justifying continued operations against Iranian military infrastructure.
Administration officials have maintained that degrading Iran's nuclear program remains a core objective, while also emphasizing that the strikes aim to prevent further attacks on U.S. forces and allies. The killing of two American soldiers at the Jordanian base has intensified pressure from Republican lawmakers to respond decisively, with multiple senators calling for expanded operations against Iranian assets.
What the Numbers Show
Jordan depends heavily on maritime trade through its only Red Sea port at Aqaba, making the potential closure of the Bab al-Mandab Strait a critical economic threat. According to Muasher's assessment during the interview, much of Jordan's exports and imports travel through that corridor.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which significant oil shipments pass to energy-importing nations like Jordan, has seen shipping disrupted following the breakdown of a deal signed last month. Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen have threatened to expand their blockade efforts to additional maritime chokepoints, compounding concerns about regional economic stability.
Muasher noted that Iran's precision strike capabilities have improved significantly compared to previous conflicts, enabling more targeted attacks on specific facilities rather than broad strikes. Jordan's tourism sector has also suffered as a direct result of the instability, he said.
The Bottom Line
The Iran conflict is creating cascading economic and security challenges for U.S. allies in the Middle East even as military operations continue. Muasher argued that American decision-makers face limited options going forward.
"The United States has made it very clear that it is good at military victories, but it's not so good at political settlements," Muasher said during the PBS interview. He characterized Iran as employing a "strategy of strategic defense" capable of withstanding sustained bombardment while making eventual negotiations more difficult to achieve.
Regional observers will watch for whether the Biden administration signals openness to diplomatic channels following the deaths of U.S. personnel, or whether military operations intensify in response to domestic political pressure.