Clear signs of escalating war in the Middle East are revealed in CNN’s exclusive report, according to which Iranian bomber aircraft came within minutes of striking the largest military base hosting American forces in the Middle East, Al Udeid in Qatar, before being shot down by aircraft from the Gulf state in their first aerial combat in history, according to two sources who briefed CNN on the operation.
On Monday morning, according to the report, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard sent two Soviet-era Su-24 bomber aircraft toward the Al Udeid air base, which typically hosts 10,000 members of the US armed forces, and toward Ras Laffan, a major natural gas processing facility and economic “hub” of Qatar, the report states.
The Iranian aircraft were “two minutes” away from their targets, one of the American media’s sources reported. A second source told CNN that the aircraft were visually identified and photographed “carrying bombs and guided munitions.”
Flying at 80 feet to avoid radar detection
Qatari authorities issued a radio warning but received no response from the aircraft, which had changed their flight altitude to 80 feet to avoid radar detection, the second source reported.
Due to “time constraints” and “based on available evidence,” the aircraft were “characterized as hostile,” the second source added. Qatar then dispatched its fighter jets, and a Qatari F-15 fighter engaged in “aerial combat” with the Iranian aircraft before shooting them down, the second source added.
The Iranian aircraft crashed in Qatari territorial waters. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed al-Ansari, stated at a press conference on Tuesday that a search for the crews is ongoing.
The incident was confirmed yesterday during a Pentagon briefing by US Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine, though without clarifying the target of the Iranian aircraft: “Qatari fighter jets shot down two Iranian bomber aircraft heading toward their target for the first time,” he stated.
In a phone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday, Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani characterized the incident as an “escalation” and as evidence that Iran has “no real desire” to de-escalate the situation or find a solution. “On the contrary, it seeks to harm its neighbors and drag them into a war that doesn’t concern them,” Al Thani stated, according to the text of the phone conversation.
According to Gulf state governments, Iran has launched more than 400 ballistic missiles and over 1,000 drones against these countries since the US and Israeli attacks.
This occurs while Gulf States, as Israeli media reported yesterday, are reportedly ready to engage in offensive operations against Iran, beyond defending their airspace.
