Iran Bombs US Base: Fifth Fleet in Bahrain Hit, Al Udeid Struck, No US Casualties Confirmed Yet
Iran has bombed US bases across the entire Middle East on Saturday, February 28, 2026, retaliating within hours of the joint US-Israeli Operation Epic Fury strikes on Tehran. The US Navy's Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, and facilities in Kuwait and the UAE have all been targeted. As of this writing, no US military casualties have been officially confirmed — but the Pentagon has not yet released a full damage assessment.
Iran Bombs US Base in Bahrain: Smoke Over Fifth Fleet Headquarters
Smoke rises in the sky after blasts were heard in Manama, Bahrain, on Saturday, February 28, 2026, as Iran targeted a US military base in Bahrain following the Israel-US attacks across Iran. The targeted facility is Naval Support Activity Bahrain — the operational nerve center of the US Navy's Fifth Fleet and the most strategically valuable American naval installation in the entire Persian Gulf region.
Iran responded to the US and Israeli strikes by launching a retaliatory strike on an American air base in Qatar, reportedly causing minor damage but inflicting no casualties. The Bahrain base strike, however, is considered far more significant given the Fifth Fleet's role commanding all US naval activity across the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, and Arabian Sea simultaneously.
Iran Bombs US Bases Across Four Gulf Nations Simultaneously
Iran confirmed its attacks on several targets across Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, where airbases with US assets are hosted. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed all Israeli and US military targets in the Middle East have been struck by the powerful blows of Iranian missiles. "This operation will continue relentlessly until the enemy is decisively defeated," it said.
Kuwait's defense ministry said its forces intercepted missiles targeting a military base hosting US and other foreign personnel as Iran waged its retaliatory campaign across the Gulf. Air defense systems in the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain all activated simultaneously, with Patriot and THAAD batteries engaging incoming Iranian ballistic missiles over multiple countries at the same time — an unprecedented simultaneous multilateral intercept operation.
Iraq Base Also Hit: Air Defense Rockets Launch From Erbil Airport
An image from video obtained by CBS News on February 28, 2026, shows air defense rockets launching from near a US military base at Erbil International Airport in northern Iraq, amid Iranian retaliatory strikes targeting American bases across the Middle East. The Erbil strike extends Iran's retaliatory footprint beyond the Gulf into Iraq, where thousands of US troops remain stationed across multiple installations.
Jordan's Public Security Directorate said in a statement there were no casualties but only material damage following Iranian activity. Civil defenses and police personnel had responded to 12 reports of falling objects and debris in the governorates of the capital Amman, Zarqa, Jerash, Madaba, and Irbid between the morning and 2 p.m. local time. The geographic breadth of Iran's retaliation — stretching from Iraq to Jordan to the Gulf — reflects a pre-planned contingency operation activated at scale.
No US Military Casualties Confirmed — Pentagon Stays Silent on Damage
Iran has struck back with missiles aimed at northern Israel and at US military bases in the Middle East. The US has in recent days amassed an immense strike force in the region, while pressing Iran to dismantle its nuclear program in negotiations that failed to reach a resolution. The Pentagon has not released a damage assessment for any of the targeted US facilities as of Saturday morning ET, and no official US military casualty figures have been confirmed from any location.
Trump acknowledged the possibility of American deaths in his Truth Social video address earlier Saturday. Trump said if IRGC forces laid down their weapons, he would ensure they had amnesty. But if they did not, he warned, they would face "certain death." He acknowledged US forces could face casualties, with Reuters quoting a US official as saying the Trump administration was planning a multiday operation.
Iran Foreign Minister Declares Every US Base a Legitimate Target
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Saturday that all sites involved in the Israeli and US strikes on Iran are legitimate targets for the Islamic Republic's armed forces. "The Iranian armed forces consider as legitimate targets the sites from which the US and Zionist operations were carried out as well as the sites of all actions against Iran's defensive operations," Araghchi said on Iranian TV.
With explosions rocking Tehran and other Iranian cities, Iran pledged a crushing retaliation and targeted US military bases in the Persian Gulf. The US has in recent days amassed an immense strike force in the region, while pressing Iran to dismantle its nuclear program in negotiations that failed to reach a resolution. Iran's text message sent to Iranian cellphones warned that its response would be "faster, more forceful, and more extensive" than the Twelve-Day War of June 2025 — a promise it appears to be actively fulfilling base by base across the Middle East.
