By Ayo Kehinde
Iran, on Monday, launched at least 10 missiles toward US bases in Qatar, and one toward Iraq.
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.”
Iran’s National Security Council, in a statement published by Tasnim, said that the attack included the same number of bombs that the US dropped in attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities, without providing exact numbers. The council said that Iran’s attack “does not pose any threat to our friendly and brotherly country, Qatar.”
Qatar condemned the Iranian attack, which it said was successfully thwarted by its air defences, and threatened to retaliate “directly.”
“We express the State of Qatar’s strong condemnation of the attack targeting the Al Udeid Air Base by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. 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”, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed Al-Ansari, said in a statement.
According to Iran’s Mehr News Agency, Iran’s missile operation against US bases in Qatar and Iraq has begun under the name Blessings of Victory.
Meanwhile, Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said in a post on X that “the siren has been sounded” and urged people to “remain calm and head to the nearest safe place.”
The United States entered the Israel-Iran war on Sunday, as President Donald Trump authorised strikes on the Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan nuclear sites. Tehran said the attacks “crossed a big red line” and vowed retaliation.
