Drones strike U.S. base in Iraq as explosions rock Doha amid widening Iran war

Iraqi forces have shot down a drone that attempted to attack a United States military base near Baghdad International Airport, according to local media reports, as Iran continues striking U.S. assets across Arab countries, deepening the regional conflict now in its sixth day.
The drone reportedly targeted the Victoria airbase overnight on Wednesday but was intercepted before reaching its intended target.

Videos circulating early Thursday showed a crashed drone in Baghdad’s Al-Bu’aitha area, with security personnel seen around the wreckage.
In a separate incident later on Thursday, a boat collided with an oil tanker flying the flag of the Bahamas at the Iraqi port of Khor al-Zubair, causing damage and triggering an oil spill, an Iraqi security source told Al Jazeera.
Later Thursday night, Bahrain announced that an Iranian missile had struck a state-run oil refinery. Authorities said the fire caused by the impact was quickly extinguished and the facility remained operational, with no casualties reported.
The incidents come as tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate following the war triggered by coordinated attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran.
Qatar’s Defence Ministry said Thursday that the country was targeted in multiple attacks involving 14 ballistic missiles and four drones launched from Iran.
According to the ministry, thirteen missiles were intercepted, while one fell into Qatar’s territorial waters. All four drones were also intercepted and no casualties were recorded.
Several explosions were heard in the skies above Doha, prompting authorities to issue an “elevated” emergency alert to residents.
Qatar’s Interior Ministry also ordered the evacuation of people living near the U.S. Embassy in Doha as a precaution.
Al Jazeera correspondent Zein Basravi, reporting from the Qatari capital, noted that the U.S. embassy complex occupies a large area located in the heart of the city.
Basravi added that U.S. diplomatic facilities across the region have faced drone threats this week, including embassies in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, as well as the U.S. consulate in Dubai.
In the United Arab Emirates, six people were injured by falling debris from drones intercepted by air-defence systems over Abu Dhabi, the emirate’s media office said.
Authorities said debris fell in two locations in the Industrial City (ICAD II) district. Those injured — nationals of Pakistan and Nepal — sustained minor to moderate injuries.
Additional explosions were also reported in Bahrain. The Bahrain Defence Force said it had destroyed 75 missiles and 123 drones targeting the kingdom since what it described as the start of “the brutal Iranian aggression.”
The violence has reverberated across the region, with attacks also reported in Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence said its air defences intercepted another drone near the al-Jawf region in the north of the country, following the earlier interception of three drones east of al-Kharj governorate.
Oman’s Oil Marketing Company said one of its storage tanks suffered minor damage in an “incident.” The company added that operations at the affected facility had been temporarily suspended, according to Reuters.
Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi called for an immediate end to the conflict.
“Oman reaffirms its call for an immediate ceasefire and a return to responsible regional diplomacy,” he wrote on X. “There are off-ramps available. Let’s use them.”
Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior also reported an explosion aboard an oil tanker outside its territorial waters, more than 60 kilometres from the Mubarak al-Kabeer port.
Officials said the vessel’s crew were safe, but the tanker had taken on water and the incident could potentially lead to environmental damage due to an oil spill.
On Wednesday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had launched 230 drones targeting facilities hosting U.S. troops in the Middle East, including a base in Erbil in northern Iraq and the Ali Al Salem airbase and Camp Arifjan in Kuwait.
The IRGC described the strikes as among its “first powerful steps” in the conflict, even though Iran had already been launching attacks on Gulf Arab states for days following the coordinated U.S.–Israel offensive that began on Saturday.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian addressed neighbouring countries on Wednesday, saying Tehran had sought to avoid war through diplomacy but the U.S.–Israel assault left it “with no choice” but to retaliate.
“We respect your sovereignty,” the president wrote in separate posts in Arabic and Persian on X, adding that Iran believes regional security must be achieved through collective efforts.
Meanwhile, the Israeli-U.S. assault on Iran has continued.
Amid the ongoing war, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei warned that European Union countries would “pay the price, sooner or later” if they remain silent over the joint attacks on Iran.
Baghaei made the remarks in comments to Spanish broadcaster TVE.
Despite the warning, there has been no indication so far that European assets will be targeted in the same way as U.S. and Arab installations across the region.
Credit: Al Jazeera