An alert was sounded at the Al Dhafra airbase in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday after an Iranian military exercise. Located about an hour from UAE’s capital city Abu Dhabi, the Al Dhafra base houses US and French troops and aircraft.
CNN has learned US bases at Al Udeid and Al Dhafra went on alert this am when intel indicators showed an Iranian missile possibly headed that way. Personnel told to take cover for several minutes. No missile struck, US officials say they took prudent precautionary measures
— Barbara Starr (@barbarastarrcnn) July 28, 2020
Incidentally, the first batch of India’s five Rafale fighter aircraft due to arrive in Haryana’s Ambala on Wednesday landed at the Al Dhafra base on Tuesday night as part of an overnight halt. The aircraft, three single-seater and two double-seater began their journey from the Merignac airbase in the French port city of Bordeaux and will be inducted into the Indian Air Force’s No 17 Squadron, also known as the ‘Golden Arrows’.
Satellite image of Al Dhafra airbase in UAE (Photo Credits: Google Maps)
US news channel CNN’s Barbara Starr reported that the Al Dhafra base in UAE and Al Udeid airbase in Qatar went on alert after intel indicators hinted at an incoming “Iranian missile possibly headed that way”. Starr claimed that personnel were told to take cover but no missile struck either of the bases. https://twitter.com/nafisehkBBC/status/1288112973710417928?s=20
Adding to that, Lucas Tomlinson of US’ Fox News also reported the incident. In a tweet, Tomlinson quoted an official who said that two bases in Middle East housing US troops and aircraft were put on high alert when “3 Iranian missiles splashed down in waters near the bases Tues. (Tuesday) as part of Iran’s military exercises.”
A correspondent for the BBC, Nafiseh Kohnavard reported that the US Navy has slammed Iran’s “manoeuvre in the Persian Gulf” calling it “irresponsible and reckless”. She further mentioned that troops in Al Dhafra base in the UAE were asked to stay in bunkers as a result of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) drill and missile tests.
Sepahnews on Tuesday released a picture of an Iran Revolutionary Guard’s speedboat firing a missile during a military exercise on July 28. The outlet also released pictures of Iranian commandos fast-roping down from a helicopter onto a replica of an aircraft carrier called “Great Prophet 14” during the exercise. The drill has come to light at a time when tensions between Washington and Tehran are visibly strained.