The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced on September 1, 2026, that it launched ballistic missiles against United States military bases near the Gulf of Aqaba in southern Jordan. ^[1] Researchers studying the solitary ascidian Polycarpa mytiligera found that when the animal was cut into separate pieces, each surviving fragment could regenerate into a complete, functional individual. ^[2] The attack was carried out as a retaliatory measure in response to a recent wave of airstrikes conducted by the United States against Iranian objectives. ^[3] The strike marks a new escalation in the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States. ^[4] Researchers collected the Polycarpa mytiligera animals from the Gulf of Aqaba near Eilat and made controlled cuts at different points along their bodies. ^[5] The research was published in Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology in a paper titled 'And Then There Were Three…: Extreme Regeneration Ability of the Solitary Chordate Polycarpa mytiligera'. ^[6] The researchers found that the animals could rebuild major organs, including the heart, digestive system, and neural complex, with no visible traces of their original structures. ^[7] The targeted locations are described as US military installations situated in the southern region of Jordan. ^[8]