Iran has launched missile and drone attacks on United States military assets across several Gulf Arab states, retaliating after a large-scale joint strike by Washington and Israel, raising fears of a wider regional conflict, reports Al Jazeera.
Tehran confirmed on Saturday that it had targeted sites in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, countries that host US air and naval facilities, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said all Israeli and US military targets in the Middle East had been struck “by the powerful blows of Iranian missiles”, adding that operations would continue until what it called aggression ceased.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Hamid Ghanbari told Al Jazeera that Iran had the right to defend itself and regretted any humanitarian losses resulting from the escalation. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote to the United Nations Security Council and Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Iran would continue to exercise its right of self-defence decisively and without hesitation until the aggression stopped fully and unequivocally.
United Arab Emirates
In the United Arab Emirates, at least one person was killed in Abu Dhabi after several missiles launched from Iran were intercepted, the state news agency reported, without giving further details.
A fire broke out near a hotel on Dubai’s Palm Islands after multiple blasts were heard during the day. The Dubai media office later confirmed an “incident” in a building in the Palm Jumeirah area that caused a fire and injured four people.
Bahrain
Bahrain said a missile attack had targeted the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in the capital, Manama, describing it as a treacherous act and a violation of its sovereignty and security.
Footage circulating on social media appeared to show an Iranian Shahed drone hitting a tower block near the headquarters and setting it ablaze. The Interior Ministry said several residential buildings in Manama had been struck, with civil defence units carrying out firefighting and rescue operations.
Kuwait
Kuwait’s Defence Ministry said Ali al-Salem Air Base had been attacked by several ballistic missiles, all intercepted by Kuwaiti air defences.
Abdullah al-Rajhi, spokesperson for the General Authority of Civil Aviation, said a drone had targeted Kuwait International Airport, causing minor injuries to several employees and material damage to the passenger terminal building.
The official KUNA news agency cited the Foreign Ministry as saying Kuwait reserved the right to defend itself.
Qatar
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said it had thwarted attacks under a pre-approved security plan, intercepting all missiles before they reached Qatari territory.
Sources told Al Jazeera that a long-range early warning radar in northern Qatar had been targeted by an Iranian missile. No injuries were reported.
The Foreign Ministry said the targeting of Qatar by a neighbouring state could not be accepted under any justification or pretext, noting that Doha had distanced itself from regional conflicts.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that Iran had targeted Riyadh and the kingdom’s eastern region, adding that the attacks had been repelled.
It said the strikes could not be justified under any pretext and occurred despite Iranian authorities knowing that the kingdom had stated it would not allow its airspace or territory to be used to target Iran.
Iraq
In Iraq, an Al Jazeera correspondent reported that Erbil Airport in the autonomous Kurdish region had been targeted twice on Saturday.
A drone attack aimed at Erbil International Airport was intercepted and shot down by air defences, the correspondent said. The United States maintains troops in the Kurdish region as part of an international coalition against ISIL, which is scheduled to end by September under an agreement between Washington and Baghdad.
Separately, a drone strike hit a headquarters of the armed group Kataeb Hezbollah southwest of Baghdad, killing two people, according to The Associated Press. Further strikes were later reported in Jurf al-Nasr, an Iraqi military base housing a former paramilitary group that has since been integrated into the regular army, according to a source who spoke to AFP.
Airspace and shipping
Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates temporarily closed their airspace and condemned Iran’s attacks.
Vessels operating in the Gulf reported receiving messages about the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency, cited by Reuters.
Oman spared
Oman was the only Gulf Cooperation Council country not struck, Al Jazeera reported.
Muscat has long acted as a mediator between Iran and other regional and international actors and recently hosted indirect talks between Tehran and Washington in Oman and Geneva.
Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi had said on Friday that peace was within reach after Iran agreed during talks not to stockpile enriched uranium, describing it as a breakthrough. Hours later, Israel and the United States launched their attack.
