New Delhi: Iran has claimed a fresh drone strike on a US military radar installation in Bahrain, escalating tensions in the Gulf for the second time in three days. Bahrain said its air defence systems intercepted several incoming Iranian attacks on Sunday as explosions were heard and warning sirens sounded across the kingdom.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it deployed six drones against a US air-defence radar system at the Al-Rifaa helicopter base, Tasnim News Agency reported. However, there was no immediate confirmation from the US or Bahraini authorities that the radar facility had been hit.
Bahrain’s defence force said its air-defence units intercepted and destroyed the incoming aerial threats before they could reach their targets, WAM reported. The country’s interior ministry issued emergency alerts, asking residents to move to safe locations and follow official instructions.
Explosions were reported around 4am local time, with another round heard at approximately 6.30am. Air raid sirens also sounded as authorities issued public safety warnings.
Second reported radar attack in three days
The latest claim follows another Iranian announcement on Friday, that its forces had targeted a US early-warning radar system in Bahrain. The US Central Command (Centcom) said it intercepted two Iranian drones during that incident and reported no casualties or damage.
Bahrain hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, a major American military command responsible for naval operations across the region. Its strategic military presence has made the kingdom a target amid Iran’s retaliatory strike against US-linked facilities in the Gulf.
The latest escalation comes as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict remain deadlocked. The Iran’s parliamentary speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, had conveyed seven conditions for an agreement through Qatar, which has been facilitating indirect communication between the two sides, as RNA Media had earlier reported. He said Iran was awaiting an official response from Washington.
Iran’s demands include lifting US sanctions and the naval blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets and ending hostilities across the region. Tehran has also linked the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to progress on these conditions.
The United States president, Donald Trump, last week said that Washington did not need an agreement with Iran. However, on Saturday, he indicated that the United States could hold back from further attacks if Iran and the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen avoided fresh provocations. He maintained that the US naval blockade on Iran would continue.
The Strait of Hormuz remains a major point of disagreement. Iran has restricted shipping through the waterway, a critical route for global oil supplies, while Washington continues to maintain its blockade on Iranian ports. The continuing standoff has left diplomatic efforts without a breakthrough.