Iranupdated 15m ago2 min read
MapIran’s IRGC Says It Hit U.S. Radar in Bahrain as Bahrain Intercepts Drones
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IRGC says it struck a U.S. radar at Bahrain's Al-Riffa base with drones. Bahrain says its air defences intercepted and destroyed Iranian aerial attacks.
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Bahrain, Iran, and Radar
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it carried out a drone attack on a U.S. radar system at a base in Bahrain early Sunday, and the IRGC said the "Al-Riffa helicopter base" was targeted by six drones. Bahrain later said it intercepted Iranian airstrikes before they hit their targets, and Bahrain's interior ministry urged residents to remain calm, proceed to the nearest safe location, and follow news through official channels.
Explosions rang out over Bahrain early on Sunday as Iran's Guards said they attacked a U.S. military base in the Gulf nation, and AFP said blasts were heard around 4am (0100 GMT) with another series around 6:30 am. Bahrain intercepted and destroyed several Iranian aerial attacks, while Tehran said it had struck a U.S. military base in the Gulf kingdom, with no immediate confirmation from U.S. or Bahraini authorities that the radar installation had been hit.
Escalation Claims and Alerts
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the attack was part of a second wave of a "decisive and forceful" response to what they consider as a "flagrant aggression" by the United States, and the Guards labelled the U.S. escort program for ships through the Strait of Hormuz as a failure. Bahrain's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected "turning its territory into an arena for settling scores" and held Iran fully responsible for the attacks and their consequences, while Bahrain's military accused Tehran of continuing its "systematic hostile approach" towards the kingdom.
The Bahraini Interior Ministry urged citizens and residents to remain calm, go to the nearest safe location, and follow news through official channels to protect public safety, and Reuters said the first such interceptions by Bahraini air defences since September followed two warnings of potential threats. Iran's IRGC also claimed a previous strike on a U.S. early-warning radar facility in Bahrain two days earlier, while the U.S. military denied that account and said it had intercepted two Iranian drones without any damage.
Regional Stakes and Diplomacy
The CBS News live updates said Mossad director Roman Gofman was in Washington for talks, and a source familiar with the matter said Gofman met with CIA Director John Ratcliffe while in D.C. this week. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invoked the possibility of Iran developing nuclear weapons and said it was time to end the threat "once and for all," in a speech about forming a unity government with opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot.
Iran threatened to broaden the geographic scope of the war if the United States launches new attacks against the country, and it quoted Mohamad Baqer Qalibaf warning, "If this time the Americans make a mistake, it will be the capability and the will of the Iranian Armed Forces that determine the geographic extent of the battlefield." Diplomatic efforts to end the almost nine-month conflict have yet to produce a breakthrough, and President Donald Trump said he might hold off from attacking Iran if the U.S. faces no new provocations from Tehran or the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, while maintaining a U.S. naval blockade.