On Nov. 13, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed it destroyed a U.S. early-warning radar in Bahrain, where the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet is based; U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said two drones were intercepted.
CENTCOM said the IRGC launched two one-way attack drones toward Bahrain and U.S. forces shot both down. It reported no injuries or damage.
The IRGC said its action answered an attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik, southern Iran. Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported a strike in Sirik on Thursday, Nov. 12, citing official sources, but did not name the attacker or identify a target. Its report therefore did not confirm the IRGC’s claim that the tower was hit.
A Lead Inspector General regional assessment, drawing on CENTCOM reporting, put damage or destruction at U.S. bases across the region in the hundreds of structures and included Bahrain. EconoTimes previously described the assessment’s implications for regional defense planning. The Associated Press described the claim as Iran’s first report since September of targeting a facility in Bahrain.
Euronews reported that Qatar and Pakistan were continuing diplomatic mediation between Washington and Tehran. The outlet also said Iran had made its return to formal talks with Washington conditional on its demands.
