Iranian and Iranian-Backed Attacks Against Americans (1979-2025)

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the clerical regime in Tehran and its proxies have committed a range of attacks against Americans. This memorandum provides select documentation of these assaults. While the list is not comprehensive, it demonstrates that Tehran continues to pose a threat to U.S. forces in the Middle East, the American homeland, and Americans residing across the globe.

November 1979-January 1981: Iranian students — with the backing of Tehran — take 66 Americans hostage at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

April 1983: A suicide car bombing kills 63 people, including 17 Americans, at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. The Iran-backed terrorist group Islamic Jihad, a precursor and early branch of Hezbollah (not to be confused with Palestinian Islamic Jihad), claims responsibility.

October 1983: Operatives of the Iran-backed Hezbollah drive a truck bomb at a Marine compound in Beirut, killing 220 U.S. Marines and 21 other service personnel.

December 1983: Hezbollah operatives drive an explosives-filled dump truck through the gates of the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait City. No Americans are harmed.

March 1984: Terrorists kidnap CIA station chief William Buckley in Beirut, subsequently torturing and ultimately killing him in 1985. Islamic Jihad claims responsibility.

December 1984: Hezbollah terrorists hijack Kuwait Airways Flight 221 on its way from Kuwait to Pakistan and divert it to Tehran, killing two American officials from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

June 1985: Hezbollah terrorists hijack TWA Flight 847 en route from Athens to Rome and kill a U.S. Navy diver.

July 1989: Hezbollah operatives kill U.S. Marine Corps Col. William Higgins after kidnapping him the previous year while on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon.

April 1995: An explosives-laden van crashes into a bus near Kfar Darom in the Gaza Strip, killing one American and seven Israelis. Palestinian Islamic Jihad claims responsibility.

August 1995: A Hamas suicide bomber blows up a bus in the Ramat Eshkol neighborhood of Jerusalem, killing an American and three other passengers and wounding more than 100.

February 1996: A Hamas suicide bomber blows up a Jerusalem bus, killing three Americans and wounding three other Americans. A total of 26 people die in the attack.

March 1996: A suicide bomber blows up the Dizengoff shopping center in Tel Aviv, wounding two Americans. Twenty people die and 75 others are injured in the attack. Both Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad claim responsibility.

May 1996: Gunmen kill an American-Israeli dual citizen in the community of Beit El in the West Bank. Another U.S. citizen and three Israelis are wounded. No group claims responsibility, but Israel suspects Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

June 1996: A truck carrying 5,000 pounds of explosives blows up the Khobar Towers, a U.S. Air Force housing complex in the Saudi Arabian town of Khobar. Nineteen Americans die and some 500 people are injured. The Iran-backed Hezbollah Al Hijaz, a terrorist group in Saudi Arabia, is deemed responsible.

September 1997: Three Hamas suicide bombers blow themselves up at the Ben Yehuda shopping mall in Jerusalem, killing a U.S.-Israeli dual citizen and wounding seven other American citizens. Four other people die and nearly 200 are wounded in the attack.

August 1998: With the assistance of Hezbollah, al Qaeda suicide bombers almost simultaneously blow up the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 people, including 12 Americans, and wounding thousands. According to the 9/11 Commission Report, al Qaeda developed “the tactical expertise for such attacks months earlier, when some of its operatives — top military committee members and several operatives who were involved with the Kenya cell among them — were sent to Hezbollah training camps in Lebanon.”

August 2001: A Hamas suicide bomber blows up the Sbarro pizzeria in Jerusalem, killing a U.S.-Israeli dual citizen and two other Americans. A total of 15 people die in the attack.

September 11, 2001: While the 9/11 Commission Report concludes that Iran had no foreknowledge of al Qaeda’s attacks on the World Trade Center, the report indicates that Tehran facilitated the travel of some of the terrorists. “In sum,” the report notes, “there is strong evidence that Iran facilitated the transit of al Qaeda members into and out of Afghanistan before 9/11, and that some of these were future 9/11 hijackers.”

January 2002: Gunmen affiliated with the Iran-backed al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade kill a U.S.-Israel dual citizen and wound another individual in the West Bank community of Beit Sahur.

July 2002: A bomb planted by a Hamas terrorist kills five Americans at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, killing five American students, including an American-Israeli dual citizen and an American-French dual citizen. A total of nine people died in the attack.

June 2003: An American citizen, along with 16 other people, died when a Hamas terrorist blew himself up on a bus in Jerusalem.

October 2003: Terrorists from the Iran-backed Popular Resistance Committees kill three U.S. diplomatic personnel in a bombing in Gaza.

2003-2011: Iranian-backed militias kill at least 603 U.S. troops in Iraq, according to the Pentagon. Iranian training and material support for Iraqi militias during the surge greatly increased the difficulty of U.S. forces to combat the insurgency and included some of the deadliest weapons used against American troops, including explosively formed penetrators (EFPs) and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

August 2003: A Hamas suicide bomber blows up a bus in Jerusalem, killing five Americans and wounding one other American. A total of 24 people died in the attack.

August 2006: Hezbollah fighters kill American citizen Michael Levin, a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), during the Second Lebanon War. He is the only American to die in the conflict.

January 2007: Twelve men affiliated with the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) disguised themselves as U.S. soldiers, entered the Provincial Joint Coordination Center in the Iraqi city of Karbala, killed five U.S. soldiers, and wounded another three. In 2019, the U.S. State Department issued a $15 million bounty for information on an IRGC Quds Force commander who planned the attack and other “assassinations of coalition forces in Iraq.”

July 2014: Hamas terrorists kill two Americans serving in the IDF during fighting between the terrorist group and Israel in Gaza as part of Operation Protective Edge.

October 2015: Hamas terrorists kill an American citizen and his wife, residents of the West Bank community of Neria, in their car in a drive-by shooting.

December 2019: Rockets fired by Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia, kills an American security contractor and wounds several U.S. service members and Iraqi personnel at the K1 military base in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk.

January 2020: A direct Iranian ballistic missile attack against the Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq causes more than 100 U.S. troops to suffer traumatic brain injuries.

March 2020: The family of former FBI agent Robert Levinson, who disappeared in Iran in 2007, announces that he likely died in an Iranian prison at an unknown date.

September 2020: U.S. intelligence reports indicate that Iran is weighing a plot to assassinate U.S. Ambassador to South Africa Lana Marks.

February 2021: An rocket fired by an Iran-backed militia at coalition forces in the Iraqi city of Erbil wounds a U.S. service member and four U.S. civilian contractors.

July 2021: Iranian-backed militias conduct at least three rocket and drone attacks against U.S. forces in 24 hours in Iraq and Syria, wounding two U.S. service members.

September 2022: An Iranian rocket attack kills an American citizen in Iraqi Kurdistan.

November 2022: A captain in Iran’s IRGC orchestrates the killing of an American citizen living in Baghdad who worked at an English language institute.

March 2023: An Iranian drone kills an American contractor and wounds five service members and another contractor when it strikes a coalition base near the Syrian city of Hasakah.

October 7, 2023: Hamas kills at least 48 Americans and kidnaps at least 12 Americans in a massacre of 1,200 people in southern Israel.

December 2023: A drone attack conducted by an Iranian-backed Iraqi militia against U.S. forces in Erbil wounds three American soldiers, including one critically injured with shrapnel to the head that placed him in a coma.

January 2024: A drone launched by Kataib Hezbollah kills three U.S. soldiers at a U.S. military base in Jordan and wounded more than 40 other service members.

October 2024: Iran executes German-Iranian national and U.S. permanent resident Jamshid Sharmahd on fraudulent terrorism charges.

November 2024: A report released by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies indicates that Iran and its proxies have conducted more than 180 attacks against U.S. forces in the Middle East between October 17, 2023, and November 19, 2024, resulting in more than 180 wounded and three killed U.S. service members.

November 2024: The U.S. Department of Justice announces charges against an Iranian national and two American accomplices for plotting to assassinate President Trump.

March 2025: A U.S. jury convicts two agents of Iran for plotting to assassinate Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad in New York in 2022.

June 2025: At least three U.S. bases in Syria and two U.S. bases in Iraq are attacked with missiles or drones, likely by Iranian-backed militias.

And it’s all true.

We don’t have troops in Venezuela, we don’t plan to nation build in Iran, and he helped end the conflict between Pakistan and India, massively de-escalated the conflict in Gaza and Israel, and is doing his best to end the near senseless war in Ukraine which never should have happened in the first place.

I believe, he attempted to sincerely negotiate the issue of nukes and Iran.

His first strike was nearly “gentlemanly” avoiding massive loss of life and instead focusing on objects and installations, facilities and their equipment needed to produce a nuke.

But Iran is refusing to change course.

What should he do?

Accept a nuclear Iran?

Are you really supporting that position?

Is this offensive? Yes.

Is it expeditionary? Yes.

Does he have some UN mandate (as if that matters)? No.

Is he violating Iran’s sovereign right to do what they want? Yes.

But the alternative is very bad, a nuclear armed Iran, like North Korea.

Regards a nuclear Iran, there are 100 scenarios you can dream up, all in the realm of possible, where this will end very bad.

From what I’m reading, even others in the region have more or less pushed us to take action. I believe Saudi Arabia and the UAE. They may now distance themselves, but it is my understanding that MBS and the UAE have been asking for this threat to be dealt with. Realize, Iran has a loooooong history of seizing ships, mining the gulf, shooting missile off the strait of Hormuz, supporting Houti warlords in Yemen, supplying these war lords with missiles used on merchant ships and against Israel, arming certain militias in Iraq, arming Hezbollah...

I’m sure we’re the bad guys, that’s just automatic in the Muslim world. But behind closed doors, even Egypt will likely sigh in relief as shipping through the Suez was threatened by the constant attacks on merchant ships going in or coming out of the canal on the Red Sea side. Something like 1/2 all the shipping is rerouted around Africa.

Iran is something for comedy movie. “The Naked Gun terrorist meeting” https://share.google/3lMNpchPXkMudfK8N. Not far from the truth.

I posted this for the record yesterday:

Iran and its proxies have issued many threats,

Some are rhetorical (“wipe Israel off the map”),
Others are credible capabilities‑based warnings (“we will retaliate if…”),
And attacks come both from Iran‑proper and from its proxies (like Hezbollah).

But we can give a clear, fact‑anchored breakdown in two parts:

How often Iran has threatened the U.S., Israel, or their allies with destruction or massive retaliation.
How often Iran (and Hezbollah) has actually attacked them.

1. How often Iran has threatened the U.S., Israel, or allies

Iran’s rhetoric toward Israel

Since the 1990s, Iran’s supreme leaders and Revolutionary Guard figures have repeatedly framed Israel as “illegitimate” and vowed its eventual destruction or “elimination.”dw+1
The “wipe Israel off the map” line, though often taken out of context, is part of a long‑standing rhetorical pattern of calling Israel a “cancer” or “Zionist regime” that must disappear.jcfa+1
Analysts describe Iran’s threat posture toward Israel as “persistent and existential in tone,” even if the precise wording varies from year to year.dw+1

It is not a handful of incidents; it is a continuous, doctrinal‑level threat over decades.

Iran’s threats toward the U.S.

Iran regularly threatens retaliation against U.S. military bases, economic sanctions, and “regime‑change” rhetoric.
In recent years, Iranian officials have:
- Warned the U.S. that it would retaliate if Washington struck Iran’s nuclear facilities.aljazeera+1
- Declared that U.S. bases in the Gulf region are within range of Iranian missiles and drones.aljazeera+1
- Promised to target Israel and U.S. interests simultaneously if attacked.nbcnews+1

Again, this is not a single “threat” but a repeated, escalating pattern tied to sanctions, nuclear talks, and periodic strikes.

Hezbollah’s threats toward Israel

Hezbollah, Iran’s key Lebanese proxy, has:
- Repeatedly threatened to annihilate or “erase” Israel and its civilians in any full‑scale war.jcfa+1
- Promised massive missile barrages targeting Israeli cities if Israel attacks Lebanon.aljazeera+1
- Reacted to Israeli strikes with loud vows that Israel will “pay a price” and that retaliation will be devastating.bbc+1

So:

There is no single, neat count like “47 times Iran threatened the U.S.,”
But all three—Iran, its proxies (especially Hezbollah), and their leaders—have issued repeated, public, existential‑style threats against Israel and the U.S. over many years.dw+1

2. How many times Iran (and Hezbollah) has actually attacked the U.S., Israel, or allies

Here the record is clearer:

Attacks by Iran itself

Direct missile and drone attacks on Israel
- In recent years, Iran has launched ballistic missiles and drones at Israel in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Iranian targets.
- For example, in 2026 escalations, Iran and Israel have engaged in reciprocal missile and drone strikes, with Iran launching barrages at Israeli cities and military sites.edition.cnn+2
Missile and drone attacks on U.S. and allied targets
- Iran has targeted U.S. military facilities in the Gulf (e.g., bases in Qatar and other Gulf states), using missiles and drones, often in response to American strikes on Iranian sites.edition.cnn+1
- In recent conflicts, Iran has launched missiles at Israel and U.S.‑linked installations, with some intercepted and some causing damage.aljazeera+1

Attacks by Hezbollah (Iran’s proxy)

2006 Lebanon War:
- Hezbollah launched thousands of rockets at Israeli cities and military targets, starting a full‑scale war with Israel.[dw]
Ongoing border conflict with Israel:
- Since 2023–2026, Hezbollah has maintained a daily or near‑daily campaign of rocket and drone attacks across the Lebanon–Israel border, in coordination with, and funded by, Iran.972mag+1
Attacks on U.S. interests:
- Hezbollah has a long history of targeting Western, including U.S. and Israeli, interests, including embassies, military bases, and Jewish institutions, especially in the 1980s–1990s.[dw]

Iran, its leaders, and its proxies (especially Hezbollah) have repeatedly, over decades, threatened the U.S., Israel, and their allies with destruction, annihilation, and massive retaliation.jcfa+1
These threats are not a one‑time or rare thing, but a persistent, doctrine‑level posture.aljazeera+1

Actual attacks:
- Iran has directly attacked Israel with missiles and drones in recent years, and U.S. and allied bases in the Gulf, in multiple rounds of retaliation following Israeli or American strikes.aljazeera+2
- Hezbollah, as Iran’s key proxy, has launched massive rocket and missile attacks on Israel (notably in 2006 and repeatedly since 2023), and has a long history of attacks on U.S. and Western targets.aljazeera+1

Here is a bulleted list you can use or adapt, combining what was said above with distinct, documented threats and actions by Iran and its proxies (especially Hezbollah) against the U.S., Israel, or their allies:
Iran’s threats toward the U.S., Israel, and allies (non‑exhaustive)
Repeated rhetoric calling Israel “illegitimate” and vowing its elimination or “wiping off the map” by senior Iranian leaders (including former President Ahmadinejad and senior clerics), framing Israel as a “Zionist regime” that must disappear.dw+1
Calls for Israel to be “erased” or “wiped out” embedded in official Iranian statements and Revolutionary Guard rhetoric, even when not phrased in the exact “wipe off the map” wording.jcfa+1
Warnings that Israel will be “obliterated” or “pay an unacceptable price” if it attacks Iran’s nuclear facilities or key military sites.aljazeera+1
Threats to “retaliate massively” against U.S. interests in the Gulf if Washington strikes Iran, including targeting U.S. military bases in Qatar, Bahrain, and other Gulf states.edition.cnn+1
Warnings that Iran’s missile and drone reach extends to every U.S. base in the region, and that any U.S. aggression will be met with a “devastating” response.jcfa+1
Revolutionary Guard and clerical leaders repeatedly threatening to “end the regime of the Zionists” and to “liberate Jerusalem” through armed confrontation.dw+1
Iran’s actual attacks on the U.S., Israel, and allies (non‑exhaustive)
Direct missile and drone attacks on Israel:
In recent years (including 2024–2026 escalations), Iran has launched ballistic missiles and drones at Israeli territory in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Iranian sites in Syria and elsewhere.aljazeera+1
In 2026, Iran launched missile barrages toward Israel, intercepted or partially intercepted by Israeli air defenses, in response to Israeli‑U.S. strikes on Iranian targets.bbc+2
Missile and drone attacks on U.S. and allied facilities:
Iran has launched missiles and drones targeting U.S. military bases or partner‑nation bases in the Gulf region, including installations hosting U.S. forces.aljazeera+1
In the 2026 U.S.–Iran‑Israel escalation, Iranian missiles and drones were directed at U.S.‑linked installations and the U.S. 5th Fleet assets, though many were intercepted.cnbc+2
Proxy attacks and covert operations:
Iranian‑linked militias in Iraq and elsewhere have fired rockets at bases hosting U.S. troops in Iraq and the Gulf, often in coordination with Iranian guidance.[aljazeera]
Iran has been linked to plotting attacks on U.S. soil and abroad (including foiled plots), which U.S. officials have publicly attributed to Iranian intelligence or IRGC‑Quds Force direction.[aljazeera]
Hezbollah’s threats toward Israel and the U.S. (Iran’s key proxy)
Repeated vows to “wipe out” or “erase” Israel in Hezbollah rhetoric, often echoing Iran’s tone about Israel’s illegitimacy.dw+1
Threats that “all of Israel is within range” of Hezbollah’s rocket and missile arsenal if a war breaks out.[dw]
Public warnings that Israel will “pay an unbearable price” for any attack on Lebanon, vowing massive rocket barrages against Israeli cities.dw+1
Threats against U.S. and other Western interests, including warnings that any U.S. escalation in the region would face Hezbollah response.[dw]
Hezbollah’s attacks on Israel and U.S.‑linked interests
2006 Lebanon War:
Hezbollah launched thousands of rockets at Israeli cities and military targets, initiating a full‑scale war with Israel.[dw]
Ongoing border conflict with Israel (2023–2026):
Hezbollah has conducted daily or near‑daily rocket, mortar, and drone attacks across the Lebanon–Israel border, firing into northern Israeli communities and military positions.972mag+1
These attacks frequently trigger Israeli retaliatory strikes, creating a sustained low‑to‑medium‑level war zone along the frontier.[aljazeera]
Past attacks on U.S. and Western targets:
Hezbollah’s history includes attacks on U.S. and Western diplomatic and military targets, such as the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and other hostage‑taking and bombing operations, often in Iran‑linked campaigns.[dw]
to summarize this concisely
Iran has repeatedly, over decades, threatened the U.S., Israel, and their allies with systemic destruction, massive retaliation, and existential annihilation, especially against Israel.jcfa+1
Iran has directly attacked Israel with missiles and drones, and U.S. and allied facilities in the Gulf, multiple times in recent years, especially in 2024–2026 escalations.aljazeera+1
Iran’s proxy Hezbollah has issued persistent, existential‑sounding threats against Israel and U.S.‑linked interests, and has launched thousands of rockets and ongoing attacks across the Israel–Lebanon border, including a full‑scale war in 2006 and sustained bombardment since 2023.aljazeera+1
- perplexity.ai

Numbered list:

Here it is as a numbered list (one item per event):

November 1979–January 1981: Iranian students, with backing from Tehran, take 66 Americans hostage at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.
April 1983: A suicide car bombing at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut kills 63 people, including 17 Americans; Islamic Jihad, an Iran‑backed precursor to Hezbollah, claims responsibility.
March 1984: Terrorists kidnap CIA station chief William Buckley in Beirut; he is tortured and killed in 1985; Islamic Jihad claims responsibility.
December 1984: Hezbollah terrorists hijack Kuwait Airways Flight 221 to Tehran and kill two American USAID officials.
February 1996: A Hamas suicide bomber blows up a Jerusalem bus, killing three Americans and wounding three more; 26 total die.
March 1996: A suicide bomber attacks the Dizengoff shopping center in Tel Aviv, wounding two Americans; 20 die and 75 are injured; Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad claim responsibility.
May 1996: Gunmen kill an American‑Israeli dual citizen in Beit El in the West Bank and wound another U.S. citizen and three Israelis; Israel suspects Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
June 1996: A truck bomb destroys the Khobar Towers U.S. Air Force housing complex in Saudi Arabia, killing 19 Americans and injuring about 500; Iran‑backed Hezbollah al‑Hijaz is deemed responsible.
August 1998: With Hezbollah assistance, al Qaeda suicide bombers attack the U.S. Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing 224 (including 12 Americans) and wounding thousands.
September 11, 2001: Iran is found to have facilitated travel for some al Qaeda members (including future hijackers) into and out of Afghanistan, though without evidence of foreknowledge of the attacks.
January 2002: Gunmen from the Iran‑backed al‑Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade kill a U.S.–Israel dual citizen and wound another person in Beit Sahur in the West Bank.
July 2002: A Hamas bomb at Hebrew University in Jerusalem kills five Americans (including dual citizens) and four others.
June 2003: A Hamas suicide bomber on a Jerusalem bus kills an American citizen among 17 total dead.
October 2003: Iran‑backed Popular Resistance Committees terrorists kill three U.S. diplomatic personnel in a bombing in Gaza.
2003–2011: Iranian‑backed militias in Iraq kill at least 603 U.S. troops; Iran provides training and weapons such as EFPs and IEDs, greatly complicating U.S. counterinsurgency operations.
January 2007: Twelve Quds Force–linked operatives, disguised as U.S. soldiers, raid the Provincial Joint Coordination Center in Karbala, Iraq, killing five U.S. soldiers and wounding three.
July 2014: Hamas terrorists kill two Americans serving in the IDF during fighting in Gaza (Operation Protective Edge).
October 2015: Hamas terrorists kill an American citizen and his wife in a drive‑by shooting in Neria in the West Bank.
December 2019: Rockets fired by Kataib Hezbollah kill an American contractor and wound several U.S. service members and Iraqi personnel at K1 base near Kirkuk, Iraq.
January 2020: A direct Iranian ballistic‑missile strike on Ain al‑Asad airbase in Iraq causes traumatic brain injuries in over 100 U.S. troops.
February 2021: A rocket fired by an Iran‑backed militia at coalition forces in Erbil, Iraq, wounds a U.S. service member and four U.S. civilian contractors.
July 2021: Iranian‑backed militias conduct at least three rocket and drone attacks within 24 hours on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria, wounding two U.S. service members.
September 2022: An Iranian rocket attack in Iraqi Kurdistan kills an American citizen.
November 2022: An IRGC captain orchestrates the killing of an American citizen living in Baghdad who worked at an English language institute.
March 2023: An Iranian drone strikes a coalition base near Hasakah, Syria, killing an American contractor and wounding five service members and another contractor.
October 7, 2023: Hamas massacres about 1,200 people in southern Israel, killing at least 48 Americans and kidnapping at least 12 Americans.
December 2023: An Iranian‑backed Iraqi militia drone attack on U.S. forces in Erbil wounds three American soldiers, one critically with shrapnel to the head.
January 2024: A drone launched by Kataib Hezbollah kills three U.S. soldiers at a U.S. base in Jordan and wounds more than 40 other service members.
October 2024: Iran executes Jamshid Sharmahd, a German‑Iranian national and U.S. permanent resident, on terrorism charges widely described as fraudulent.
November 2024: A report states that Iran and its proxies carried out more than 180 attacks on U.S. forces in the Middle East between October 17, 2023, and November 19, 2024, wounding over 180 and killing three U.S. service members.
November 2024: The U.S. Department of Justice charges an Iranian national and two American accomplices with plotting to assassinate President Donald Trump.
March 2025: A U.S. jury convicts two Iranian agents for plotting to assassinate Iranian‑American journalist Masih Alinejad in New York in 2022.

If you’d like this as HTML, I can format it as an ordered <ol><li> block next.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.