WASHINGTON: The US military said it shot down two Iranian attack drones headed towards Bahrain, denying Tehran’s claim that it had destroyed an American early-warning radar installation in the Gulf kingdom.
In a statement on Friday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had launched two one-way attack drones towards Bahrain, but both were intercepted by American forces.
“There were no injuries or damage,” CENTCOM said, rejecting the Iranian account of a successful strike on the radar facility.
The statement came after Iran’s state-run news agency IRNA reported that the IRGC had targeted and destroyed a US early-warning radar system in Bahrain. The claim could not be independently verified.
Iran links alleged Bahrain strike to attack in Sirik
The IRGC described its action as retaliation for what it said was an American airstrike on a telecommunications tower in Sirik, a coastal town in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province.
Iranian state media had earlier reported that Sirik was hit by an “enemy” strike on Thursday, without initially providing details about the target, damage or casualties.
In its statement, the IRGC warned that its aerospace force was prepared to respond to further acts of aggression and accused the United States of aerial provocations and oil smuggling in the Strait of Hormuz.
However, CENTCOM’s account indicated that the two drones launched towards Bahrain had been intercepted before causing any reported damage.
Bahrain hosts US Navy’s Fifth Fleet
Bahrain is a strategically important US military partner in the Gulf and hosts the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, which oversees American naval operations across a large part of the Middle East.
Iran’s claim of targeting the radar installation marks its first reported claim of an attack on a US military facility in a Gulf country since early September, according to Reuters.
The latest incident comes amid a fragile lull in the conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, which began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 and subsequently spread across the region.
Tehran has previously launched missile and drone attacks against US military facilities in Gulf countries in retaliation for American strikes. The conflict has also heightened tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical passage for global oil and gas shipments.
The latest exchange underscores the continuing risk of renewed escalation even as Washington and Tehran remain engaged in a broader standoff over the strategic waterway and regional security.