ShareDOHA/KUWAIT: Iran’s military said it carried out a missile attack on the Al-Udeid US airbase in Qatar on Monday after explosions were heard across the Qatari capital following Tehran’s threat to retaliate for US airstrikes on its nuclear sites. The Iranian military said the attack was “devastating and powerful,” but US officials said no US personnel were killed or injured in the attack on the airbase, the largest US military installation in the Middle East.
Iran, which had been warned by Washington not to retaliate or face massive US military action, had informed the US via two diplomatic channels hours ahead of the attack, as well as Qatari authorities, a senior regional source told Reuters. Qatar’s defense minister told Al Jazeera its air defenses had intercepted missiles directed at the Al-Udeid air base, the largest US military installation in the Middle East.
Qatar said it “reserved the right to respond” after the attack. “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,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a statement, adding that the US base had been evacuated as a precaution ahead of the attack.
HH the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Monday called Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in the aftermath of the missile attack launched by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps on Al-Udeid airbase. HH the Amir voiced Kuwait’s emphatic condemnation and denunciation of this obvious aggression as a clear breach of Qatar’s sovereignty and airspace, as well as international law and the UN Charter.
He reiterated that Kuwait absolutely stands side by side with Qatar’s leadership, government and people, and utterly backs all measures and decisions it is taking to safeguard its sovereignty, security and stability. He also underlined Kuwait’s readiness to use all its potential and resources to support Qatar, stressing that Qatar’s security and stability are an integral part of Kuwait’s security and stability. The Amir of Qatar, for his part, voiced much thanks and appreciation to HH the Amir, wishing him good health and Kuwait and its people progress and development.
Kuwait’s Supreme Defense Council held an emergency meeting on Sunday at Bayan Palace to discuss the latest regional developments. The meeting was chaired by HH the Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and attended by HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. The council reviewed recent regional escalations and ongoing security challenges.
Kuwait Army denied rumors that a military air base in the country was subjected to a missile attack, stressing that there was no attack or violation of Kuwait’s sovereignty. In a statement Monday, the army urged the public to obtain news from official sources and refrain from sharing or reposting unverified news.
Kuwait strongly condemns Iran’s missile attack on Al-Udeid airbase in Qatar, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday, calling the strike a “flagrant violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and airspace”. The attack represents a violation of international law and UN Charter, and poses a major threat to regional peace, security and stability, the ministry said.
Kuwait stands fully with Qatar and fully supports all measures it may take in order to protect its sovereignty, security and stability, including its right to retaliate in the way it deems fit, the ministry said, reiterating Kuwait’s readiness to provide all capabilities in helping Qatar. Kuwait renews the call for stopping military operations in the region, halting the expansion of the conflict that started with the Zionist forces’ attacks, and intensifying regional efforts in order to resolve conflicts through diplomacy, the ministry said.
Kuwait also said it was closing its airspace “until further notice” on Monday after a similar move from Qatar and Bahrain as Iran attacked the US base in Qatar. The Kuwaiti Directorate General of Civil Aviation later said the airspace had reopened.
Kuwait’s Civil Defense Committee held a meeting on Monday, chaired by First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah, to enhance preparedness considering recent regional developments. The meeting took place at the Crisis and Disaster Management Center in the Nawaf Al-Ahmad Building and was attended by Acting Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior, Maj Gen Ali Al-Adwani, along with 32 representatives from various government institutions.
The meeting discussed operational mechanisms of specialized field evacuation and shelter teams, emphasizing the importance of strengthening effective communication among concerned authorities. The discussions stressed unifying efforts within an integrated system that ensures swift response and the highest levels of coordination in crisis and emergency management. It also underlined the need to activate early warning systems and unified control centers to expedite decision-making and resource allocation, thereby reinforcing national readiness and achieving the highest standards of safety and stability.
Iran’s National Security Council confirmed it had attacked the US military base in Qatar on Monday in retaliation for American strikes on its nuclear facilities, adding its response did not “pose any threat” to its Gulf neighbor. “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 airbase 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.
The Iranian attack in Qatar will impact relationship-building efforts that have been underway between the Arab Gulf states and Iran, a Gulf official told Reuters on Monday. “Iran’s actions play into the hands of (the Zionist entity), which wants to sow discord and derail recent improvements in relations between Iran and the Gulf countries,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. In recent years, Gulf countries Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have restored once-frayed ties with Iran.
Iran had issued threats to retaliate against the United States after US bombers dropped 30,000-pound bunker-busters on Iranian underground nuclear facilities at the weekend, joining the Zionist entity’s air war against Tehran, and President Donald Trump mooted the possibility of the Iranian government being toppled. The attack came shortly after a Western diplomat told Reuters there had been a credible threat to a US military base in the Gulf state following the unprecedented US airstrikes on Iran’s uranium enrichment program.
A source familiar with the matter told Reuters that Qatar, situated just across the Gulf from Iran, had shut its airspace after receiving the advance warning from Iran. Bahrain, another US-allied Gulf Arab state just to the north of Qatar, said it had also shut its airspace after the Iranian strike against the Al-Udeid base. In addition, the US Ain Al-Asad air base in Iraq had activated its air defense system out of concern for a potential attack, military sources said. The main US military base in Iraq’s western neighbor Syria was also on full alert for possible attack by Iran or Iran-aligned militia groups, a Syrian security source said.
Qatar had earlier announced it had closed its airspace temporarily to ensure the safety of residents and visitors. That followed an advisory from the US embassy in Qatar to Americans to shelter in place, out of what it said was “an abundance of caution”. Two US officials said Washington had assessed that Iran could carry out attacks targeting American forces in the Middle East soon, although the US was still seeking a diplomatic resolution that would see Tehran forgo any reprisal.
Foreign oil firms including giants BP, Eni and TotalEnergies evacuated some foreign staff from southern Iraq amid regional tensions, the state-owned Basra Oil Company said Monday. “Firms operating in the fields of the Basra Oil Company have temporarily evacuated some of their foreign personnel,” the company said in a statement. It added that operations were not affected in the southern province of Basra, which produces most of Iraq’s crude oil.
The evacuations are due to the “security situation” in the region, an official from the company told AFP. British energy giant BP, which is one of the biggest foreign players in Iraq’s oil sector, evacuated staff from the huge Rumaila field. The evacuation “has not affected” production since Iraqi staff are handling operations in coordination “remotely” with the British firm, Basra Oil Company said.
The Italian firm ENI “has gradually reduced its staff from 260 to 98 employees,” while France’s TotalEnergies “evacuated 60 percent of its personnel in anticipation of an emergency”. Russian oil giant Lukoil and Chinese companies have not evacuated their staff. Iraq is a founding member of the OPEC cartel, and its crude oil sales make up 90 percent of Iraq’s budget revenues. Iran-aligned Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah had warned it would resume attacks on US troops in the region if the United States intervenes in Iran. – Agencies
