WASHINGTON: Iran fired ballistic missiles at a US base in Qatar on Monday but there are no known American casualties or damage to the facility, a US defence official said.
“I can confirm that Al Udeid Air Base was attacked by short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles originating from Iran today. At this time, there are no reports of US casualties,” the official said as quoted by AFP.
“We are not aware of any damage to the installation at this time,” the defence official added.
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said its air defence had successfully intercepted the missile attack on Al-Udeid Air Base, which resulted in no deaths or injuries.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, in a statement on X, said, “We express the State of Qatar’s strong condemnation of the attack on Al Udeid Air Base by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, and consider it a flagrant violation of the State of Qatar’s sovereignty and airspace, as well as of international law and the United Nations Charter.”
“We affirm that the State of Qatar reserves the right to respond directly in a manner proportional to the nature and scale of this blatant aggression and in accordance with international law,” the spokesman said.
The Iranian attack came after Washington’s forces struck three of Tehran’s nuclear sites with bombs and missiles over the weekend.
The massive Al Udeid base — which hosts thousands of American personnel — includes the forward headquarters of the US Central Command as well as of its air and special operations forces.
Iran confirms targeting of US base
Iran’s National Security Council confirmed it had attacked a major US military base in Qatar on Monday, adding its response did not “pose any threat” to its Gulf neighbour.
“In response to the US aggressive and insolent action against Iran’s nuclear sites and facilities, a few hours ago, the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran struck the US air base in Al-Udeid, Qatar,” the council said in a statement, adding that the number of missiles used “was the same as the number of bombs that the US had used in attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities”.
“This action does not pose any threat to our friendly and brotherly country, Qatar,” it added.
A statement from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), published by the semi-official Tasnim news agency, said Iran launched a “powerful and devastating missile attack” on the Al-Udeid base in Qatar.
The IRGC described the strike as a “clear and explicit” message to the White House, warning that Iran “will not leave any attack on its territorial integrity, sovereignty, or national security unanswered under any circumstances.”
Qatar suspends air traffic
Earlier, Qatar temporarily suspended air traffic across the country on Monday, and some Western embassies advised their citizens there to shelter in place after Iran threatened retaliation for US strikes on its nuclear sites.
Just before the explosions, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on the social platform X: “We neither initiated the war nor seeking it. But we will not leave invasion to the great Iran without answer.”
“The competent authorities announce the temporary suspension of air traffic in the country’s airspace, as part of a set of precautionary measures taken based on developments in the region,” the foreign ministry said.
It added that authorities were monitoring the situation “in coordination with regional and international partners”.
Earlier, the US embassy in Qatar advised Americans there not to go out, with other Western embassies echoing the warning.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we recommend American citizens shelter in place until further notice,” the US embassy said on its website.
