Iran Responds to US Attack, Targets Air Base in Kuwait

ILLUSTRATION PHOTO/IRGC combat vehicle/DOK FARS via Wikimedia Commons

JAKARTA - The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran said it had targeted a US airbase in Kuwait, in response to an air strike launched by Washington near Bandar Abbas Airport, southern Iran.

According to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency, the IRGC said the retaliatory attack took place at 04:50 local time (08:20 WIB), hours after what it called a US attack on a point near the port city's airport, using aerial projectiles.

"This response is a serious warning to the enemy to know that aggression will not be left alone, and if it is repeated, our response will be more decisive," the IRGC said, Thursday, May 27, as reported by ANTARA from Anadolu.

So far, there has been no immediate response from the US military.

Previously, a US official told Anadolu that US forces shot down four Iranian drones that posed a threat near the Strait of Hormuz and attacked an Iranian ground control station in Bandar Abbas that was preparing to launch a fifth drone.

"These actions are measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire," said the official, who asked not to be identified.

The latest attack comes after US Central Command (CENTCOM) earlier this week confirmed a series of previous attacks in southern Iran targeting missile launch sites and Iranian vessels allegedly trying to lay mines.

Iran condemned the attack as a "grave violation of the ceasefire."

US President Donald Trump previously admitted he was "not satisfied" with the progress of negotiations to end Washington and Tehran's war.

Tensions in the Middle East peaked on February 28 when the US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran, prompting Tehran to retaliate with a barrage of drones and missiles hitting targets across the region as well as closing the Strait of Hormuz.

The ceasefire came into effect on April 8 through Pakistani mediation, but talks in Islamabad failed to produce a more permanent deal.

Trump then extended the ceasefire indefinitely while still imposing a blockade on ships sailing to or from Iranian ports through the Strait of Hormuz.