Iran launches missiles at US bases in Qatar in retaliatory strike
IRAN fired missiles at a US air base in Qatar after promising it would respond 'proportionately and decisively' to President Donald Trump's weekend airstrikes on three of its nuclear facilities.
Qatar said the barrage at Al Udeid base — the biggest such US facility in the Middle East — was intercepted and that there were no casualties.
Al Udeid is the regional headquarters for US Central Command, which oversees the American military in the region, and is home to several thousand US service-members, though many staff had been evacuated.
Oil prices fell immediately after the attack, with Brent dropping 3.3 per cent to US$74.48 a barrel as of 6.10 pm. The attack included at least six missiles fired toward US military bases in Qatar, according to a person familiar with the matter. The UAE and Bahrain closed their airspace as a precaution.
Iran's missile strike on Qatar was telegraphed and had been expected by the US and its allies, according to another person familiar with western intelligence assessments who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations.
UK and US diplomatic missions advised Doha-based residents earlier in the day to shelter in place 'until further notice.'
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Iranian officials also suggested the move had a symbolic element. The number of missiles fired matched the number of bombs deployed by the US, and the Qatar strike 'poses no danger' to a 'friendly and brotherly country,' the state-run IRNA news agency said.
A Qatari government spokesman said on X that the base had been evacuated earlier.
The move comes after the US struck three major nuclear sites in Iran on Saturday night.
Tehran vowed to retaliate for what it called a 'grave mistake' by Trump in joining Israel's attacks on Iranian nuclear sites, Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of staff of Iran's armed forces, said in a video posted on social media by Iran's state broadcaster on Monday.
Trump had previously vowed to meet any retaliation with force 'far greater' than the US strikes on the nuclear sites. He also floated the possibility of regime change in Iran, although US and Israeli officials Sunday stressed that isn't their aim.
Israel had earlier ratcheted up attacks on various Iranian targets in the more than weeklong conflict, with the Israel Defense Forces warning residents of Tehran to expect further strikes in the coming days.
The Islamic Republic fired several missiles of its own at Israel, suggesting no immediate plans to pare back the hostilities.
Trump's decision to deploy bunker-busting bombs and cruise missiles on the country's three main nuclear sites on Sunday pushed the Middle East into uncharted territory and boosted risks in a global economy already facing severe uncertainty over his trade wars.
The US operation — which targeted nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan — marked Washington's direct entry to the war that began on June 13 when Israel unleashed attacks on Iran's nuclear and military facilities, and killed senior commanders and atomic scientists.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strikes had a 'limited' objective, focused on destroying Iran's atomic programme. BLOOMBERG
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