Iran launches drone attacks against US military base in Bahrain
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said they launched six drones on Sunday at a US air-defence radar at Bahrain’s Al-Rifaa helicopter base, the second Iranian drone strike on the Gulf kingdom in three days and a tit-for-tat reply to recent US attacks on Iranian targets, including Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. Bahrain said its air defences intercepted the drones before they reached their targets; blasts were heard and authorities issued sirens and alerts telling residents to take shelter. On Friday, Iran had already struck a US radar facility there; US Central Command said it shot down two drones with no injuries or damage. Tehran had repeatedly targeted Bahrain until a lull from September.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran would keep answering military aggression by the United States or other states and, with talks stalled, was “not waiting for anyone.” Washington has kept a naval blockade while Iran maintains a chokehold on Hormuz after a conflict that began in February with joint US and Israeli attacks. Donald Trump called recent US strikes minor, said Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states had warned against large-scale combat, and declared Washington was no longer seeking a deal with Iran, directing Vice-President JD Vance toward alleged corruption in Democrat-run cities. Vance, who blamed Republicans’ midterm loss of Congress on the Iran war, had sought a personal meeting with Iranian negotiators.
The Guards also claimed two ships hit mines in Hormuz and that an oil supertanker carrying 2 million barrels sank after “massive explosions and fire”; that was not independently verified, and the US military recently said main shipping routes had been cleared of mines. In Yemen, Iran-aligned Houthis pressed south as forces fighting for the Yemeni government said they were redeploying from Dhubab Airport and the Bab el-Mandeb area, west of Taiz, to defend Aden. Bahrain, which hosts a major US presence including the Fifth Fleet and US Naval Forces Central Command, called the attacks heinous aggression and a violation of international law and rejected Tehran’s pretexts; Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar condemned the strikes. Resident Hayat Ibrahim, 65, told Agence France Presse she had hoped Iranian attacks would not resume.
Continue in the app — vote & join in ➔