U.S. President Donald Trump vowed a forceful response on Wednesday after U.S. forces intercepted a surprise Iranian ballistic missile attack targeting American troops in Jordan overnight.

Axar.az reports that Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News.

"We're going to beat the fucking shit out of them," Trump said.

"We'll be hitting them hard. They're going to get a beating," he added.

Trump said U.S. forces had only minutes to respond to the attack and intercepted the incoming missiles before they reached their targets.

He said he had reviewed video showing U.S. personnel calling out missile coordinates in real time during the interception.

The president also said overnight U.S.-Saudi strikes against Iran-backed Shiite militias in Iraq were carried out in coordination with the Iraqi government.

Trump called the militias "a cancer on the world" and said his administration was considering additional warnings and measures against Iranian proxy groups.