Iran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles targeting multiple locations across the Gulf region on Saturday, including a direct strike on the US Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, according to reports from Bahraini officials and multiple international news outlets.
The attack on Bahrain, home to the main American naval base in the Persian Gulf, prompted a temporary pause in departure flights for military families stationed there, Stars and Stripes reported. Bahrain’s National Communication Centre confirmed the missile strike on a service centre linked to the 5th Fleet headquarters in Manama, but provided no immediate details regarding casualties or damage.
Explosions were too reported in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, with sirens sounding across Bahrain as residents were urged to seek shelter. According to reports from AFP, residents in Abu Dhabi heard loud explosions, and the UAE temporarily and partially closed its airspace as a precautionary measure. A missile was intercepted by air defence systems in Doha, though it was not immediately clear if US military installations were the intended target.
The strikes represent a direct retaliation for earlier joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian territory, according to Iranian state media. US President Donald Trump confirmed US involvement in the earlier operations, stating in a video message on his TruthSocial account that the attacks aimed to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and that the US would “destroy Iran’s missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground.” He acknowledged the possibility of American casualties.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoed Trump’s message, stating that the joint operation was intended to remove the “existential threat” posed by Iran and create conditions for the Iranian people to “grab destiny into their own hands.”
The escalation follows what Israel termed “The Lion’s Roar,” a barrage of missiles launched on Iran earlier Saturday. The CNBCTv18 reported that the initial strikes were intended to eliminate imminent threats from Iran.
As of Saturday evening, there were no immediate reports of casualties or significant damage beyond the confirmed strikes in Bahrain, the UAE, and Kuwait. The situation remains fluid, and further developments are expected. The US Navy has not yet issued a statement regarding the extent of the damage to the 5th Fleet headquarters.
