Iranian bombers came within minutes of striking a major U.S. military base in Qatar before being shot down by Qatari fighter jets, CNN reported, citing sources briefed on the operation.
According to the report, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps dispatched two Soviet-era Su-24 tactical bombers toward Al-Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East, which typically hosts about 10,000 American service members. The aircraft were also approaching Ras Laffan, a major natural gas processing facility vital to Qatar’s economy.
The bombers were “two minutes” away from their targets when Qatari forces intercepted them, one source told CNN. Another source said the aircraft were visually identified and photographed carrying bombs and guided munitions.
Qatari forces issued a warning over radio but received no response. The jets had descended to an altitude of about 80 feet, apparently to evade radar detection, the source said.
Due to time constraints and based on available intelligence, the aircraft were classified as hostile. Qatar then scrambled fighter jets, and a Qatari F-15 engaged the Iranian planes in aerial combat before shooting them down, according to the source.
The Iranian aircraft crashed into Qatar’s territorial waters. Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said a search operation is underway for the crews.
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Al-Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military installation in the Middle East
(Photo: PLANET LABS / AFP)
U.S. Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed the incident during a Pentagon briefing on Wednesday, though he did not specify the intended targets of the Iranian aircraft.
“Qatari fighters for the first time have shot down two Iranian bombers en route to their location,” Caine said.
In a phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani described the incident as an escalation that suggested Tehran had no genuine intention of reducing tensions.
“Rather, it seeks to inflict harm on its neighbors and drag them into a war that is not theirs,” Al Thani said, according to a readout of the call.
The incident marked a rare shift in Iran’s tactics. Tehran has mostly retaliated against U.S. and Israeli strikes using missiles and drones rather than manned aircraft.
Regional governments say Iran has launched more than 400 ballistic missiles and over 1,000 drones toward Arab states along the Persian Gulf since the conflict began.
Most of the projectiles have been intercepted, but six U.S. service members were killed Sunday when an Iranian strike penetrated air defenses and hit a temporary operations center at Kuwait’s Shuaiba port.