No Casualty In Iranian Strikes On US Bases, Reserve Right To Respond: Qatar
Qatar confirmed that no casualties have taken place in the Iranian attack on American military bases in the country. Doha said it reserves the right to respond to the Iranian aggression.
The Qatari foreign ministry condemned the attack, which dragged it into a conflict which was primarily between Israel and Iran. The ministry in a statement said, "The Qatari Foreign Ministry condemns the attack as a clear breach of Qatar's sovereignty, airspace, and international law."
Around 10 pm (IST), Iran launched missiles at the Al Udeid airbase of the United States in Doha. It's one of the two airbases the US has, which is located southwest of the capital. Explosions were heard across the capital, but no significant damage has been reported till now. Air raid sirens were also heard across Qatar.
Iran, justifying the strikes in a statement, said, "Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with the sacred code or Aba Abdullah Al-Hussein (PBUH) has targeted the Al-Udeid base in Qatar with a devastating and powerful missile attack in Operation Besharat Fatah. This base is the headquarters of the Air Force and the largest strategic asset of the US terrorist army in the West Asian region," the Iranian Armed Forces said in a statement."
Meanwhile, Qatar has called it flagrant violation of its sovereignty and airspace and said, "We express the State of Qatar's strong condemnation of the attack on Al Udeid Air Base by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, and consider it a flagrant violation of the State of Qatar's sovereignty and airspace, as well as of international law," foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said in a statement.
"We emphasize that the State of Qatar was among the first countries to warn against the consequences of Israeli escalation in the region*, calling for the priority of diplomatic solutions, and adhering to the principles of good neighborliness and non-escalation, affirming that dialogue is the only way to overcome current crises and preserve the security of the region and the peace of its peoples," the statement said.
"The base had been evacuated earlier in accordance with approved security and precautionary measures, in light of the tensions currently prevailing in the region. All necessary measures were taken to ensure the safety of the base's personnel, including members of the Qatari Armed Forces, friendly forces, and others. He confirmed that no injuries or human losses occurred as a result of the attack," they added.
The Iranian strikes now now pulled Qatar into the conflict, which began earlier this month when Israel carried out missile, drone strikes on Iran, followed by Tehran's response. The to-and-fro between the countries continued, and the US intervened yesterday after it struck three Iranian nuclear sites: Fordow, Esfahan and Natanz with GBU-57 bunker-buster bombs and Tomahawk missiles. After strikes on Qatar, four countries are involved in the conflict in the Middle East.
A few hours before the Iranian strikes, Qatar had closed its airspace. Data from FlightRadar24 showed airlines avoiding airspace over the region. Now, Bahrain has suspended air traffic 'temporarily' after Iran attack on US base in Qatar.
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