• Source:JND
Add as a preferred

Iran has published a video asserting it destroyed a critical US military communication facility in Qatar during last month's short war with Israel, raising new concerns about the security of America's largest base in the Middle East. On X, the Iranian embassy in India tweeted that satellite imagery confirms that Iranian military "took out the US military's main Communications Radome in Qatar" in the June 23 missile attack. The post went on to say that the second radome is in Kuwait.

The footage and claim have sparked intense debate after Iran International published an exclusive report citing fresh satellite images from the private firm Satellogic. Taken on June 24, the images appear to demonstrate damage to the radome, a sophisticated dome-shaped building that houses sensitive communications equipment, at the center of Al Udeid Air Base, the forward headquarters of the US Central Command (CENTCOM). The US military has yet to publicly comment on the latest imagery. Earlier, US President Donald Trump said on Truth Social, "13 missiles were destroyed, and 1 was 'released' because it was going in a non-threatening direction… NO Americans got hurt, and barely any damage was inflicted." CENTCOM did confirm the missile strike in a statement on June 23, stating US and Qatari forces "successfully defended" Al Udeid Air Base outside of Doha against the Iranian ballistic missiles.

ALSO READ: Iran Issues Open Assassination Threat To Trump, Says 'Even His Florida Home Is Not Safe, Drone Might Hit'

What Is The Radome?

The radome contains a Modernisation Enterprise Terminal (MET) a $15 million satellite communication hub that was installed at Al Udeid in 2016. The MET has been created to offer secure voice, video, and data links between US forces throughout the CENTCOM area of responsibility. With advanced anti-jamming capabilities, it is essential for enabling operations and having uninterrupted command communications with Washington. Farzin Nadimi, a defence and security analyst with Iran International, mentioned the base is defended by US Army Patriot anti-missile batteries and Qatari air defenses. "As soon as Iranian missiles were detected, there were approximately two minutes to react," Nadimi stated. He further explained that a drone could have taken advantage of a gap in security since the Patriots were shooting down incoming missiles.

ALSO READ: Ayatollah Khamenei Makes First Public Appearance After War: What Does This Really Mean For Israel And US? Watch

Despite Iranian assertions of effective damage, the United States has not executed any retaliatory attacks since the attack. President Trump declared a ceasefire the next day, which continues. The attack on June 23 occurred only one day after US troops conducted surprise attacks on three Iranian nuclear sites amidst a tense 12-day battle between Iran and Israel. While US officials persist in minimizing Iran's missile attack, the satellite pictures released by Iran International have reopened questions about the actual extent of harm to vital US military facilities in the Gulf region.

Also In News