Imagery and intelligence support from Chinese groups has helped Iran threaten ships in the Strait of Hormuz and launch precision strikes on U.S. military bases in the Middle East, CNN reports, citing sources the network does not identify.

The imagery allowed Iran to hit a U.S. base in Jordan in July 2026, a strike that killed three American service members with a level of precision that U.S. officials believe was beyond Iran’s capabilities. In May 2026, the U.S. government sanctioned three Chinese satellite companies for providing imagery that, according to Washington, “enables Iran’s military strikes against U.S. forces in the Middle East.”