Iran attacked at least two U.S. air bases with more than a dozen ballistic missiles on Tuesday night, the Pentagon has confirmed.
Missiles hit Al Asad air base, a joint U.S.-Iraqi facility in Iraq’s Anbar province. The other base targeted was in Irbil in Kurdistan.
“It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran and targeted at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. military and coalition personnel at Al-Assad and Irbil,” the Department of Defense said in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner.
A U.S. Central Command official confirmed the attack to the Washington Examiner, adding that no casualties had been reported.
Reports that fighter aircraft had been scrambled in response to the attack had not been verified. “We are working on initial battle damage assessments,” the Pentagon said.
The missile strikes follow the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Quds Force, in an airstrike outside Baghdad International Airport on Friday. Iranian officials vowed revenge in response to the death of Soleimani, who is known to have coordinated Iranian proxy terrorist groups in the Middle East.
“In recent days and in response to Iranian threats and actions, the Department of Defense has taken all appropriate measures to safeguard our personnel and partners,” the statement said. “These bases have been on high alert due to indications that the Iranian regime planned to attack our forces and interests in the region.”
“As we evaluate the situation and our response, we will take all necessary measures to protect and defend U.S. personnel, partners, and allies in the region,” it added.
