Iran has attacked US bases in Qatar and Iraq in what it says is retaliation for President Trump’s airstrikes on its nuclear facilities over the weekend. Explosions have been heard over the Qatari capital, Doha, while video shows air defense missiles being deployed following what Iran called “Blessings of Victory.”
A “devastating and powerful missile” was fired at Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement shared by Iran state media. Some 10,000 US troops are based at Al Udeid, which serves as the forward HQ for US Central Command.
The White House has confirmed the potential threats to a US air base in Qatar and Iraq.
“The White House and the Department of Defense are aware of, and closely monitoring, potential threats to Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar,” it said in a statement.
Trump was due to meet with his national security team in the Situation Room at 1 p.m., the White House said.
Qatari air defenses “thwarted the attack and successfully intercepted the Iranian missiles,” Qatar’s government said.
“The State of Qatar strongly condemns the attack that targeted Al-Udeid Air Base by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. We consider this a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of the State of Qatar, its airspace, international law, and the United Nations Charter,” a Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman said in a statement on X.
“We affirm that Qatar reserves the right to respond directly in a manner equivalent with the nature and scale of this brazen aggression, in line with international law.”
The Al Udeid Air Base, 40 miles southwest of Doha, is the largest American military facility in the Middle East.
More than 100 aircraft — including bombers, tankers and Air Force surveillance assets — are maintained at the base, which has stood at the center of America’s counterterrorism operations in the region.
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Al Udeid also houses the longest air landing strip in the Persian Gulf region, with Trump touting last month that Qatar had agreed to invest $10 billion to improve that military site.
Qatar has historically been the Gulf government with the closest ties with Iran, serving as mediators during conflict and even hosting Hamas officials inside the nation.
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