Gulf nations activated air defence systems and issued emergency alerts on Saturday as Iran launched a fresh wave of missile and drone attacks, marking a sharp escalation in the region's ongoing conflict.
The UAE's National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority (NCEMA) said its air defences were engaging missile threats from Iran and advised citizens to follow updates on official channels only.
In Bahrain, the Ministry of Interior sounded sirens across the kingdom. "The siren has been sounded. Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place," the ministry said in a post on X.
Also read: US military launches fresh strikes against Iran after Tehran closes Strait of Hormuz
Kuwait's Armed Forces said they were confronting hostile aerial targets inside Kuwaiti airspace. The General Staff of the Army clarified that explosion sounds being heard were the result of air defence systems intercepting the attacks, and asked residents to follow instructions from authorities.
Qatar's Ministry of Interior raised the country's security threat level to high for the second time on Saturday morning, asking residents to stay indoors or move to safe locations.
IRGC claims strikes on Oman, Qatar bases
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it carried out a "heavy and surprise" attack on logistics support centres and refuelling platforms used by US aircraft carriers at the Port of Duqm in Oman, Iran's state broadcaster IRIB reported. The IRGC's public relations office said the sites were "destroyed" in the strike, Al Jazeera reported. Iranian outlet Tasnim described it as the third phase of Tehran's retaliation against US strikes, and the first Iranian strike on Oman since early March.
In the same round, the IRGC also said it targeted the US Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar with ballistic missiles, claiming hits on the base's command centre and a fighter aircraft maintenance facility. IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency, citing Saberin News, said missiles had struck targets in Qatar and the UAE, with explosions continuing at US military bases in both countries.
CENTCOM completes third round of strikes this week
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Saturday that its forces had completed a third round of strikes against Iran this week, saying the action was in response to an attack on the M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged commercial vessel, in the Strait of Hormuz.
US forces hit approximately 140 Iranian military targets using precision munitions launched from land- and sea-based fighter aircraft, drones and naval vessels, CENTCOM said. Targets included Iranian missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, ammunition storage facilities, communication networks and coastal surveillance locations.
"During three nights of strikes this week, CENTCOM has struck more than 300 targets at the direction of the Commander in Chief to degrade Iran's ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial vessels freely transiting the strait," CENTCOM said in a post on X, adding that commercial vessel transit through the waterway continues.
Also read: US issues fresh Iran-related sanctions as conflict flares
The escalation comes amid a fragile ceasefire that has been repeatedly tested over the past week. US President Donald Trump has given American negotiators a limited window to reach an agreement with Iran, according to AP, citing US officials.
Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Saturday that avenging his father's death in a February 28 airstrike was "a national demand."
