Iran continues to attack US assets in the region as Gulf Arab states report explosions and drone downings.
Published March 5, 2026
Iraqi forces shot down a drone attempting to attack a US military base near Baghdad International Airport, local media reported, as Iran continues to attack US assets in Arab countries as the region sinks further into war after six days.
The drone attempted to target Victoria Air Base overnight on Wednesday and was intercepted before reaching its target, according to reports.
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Videos that emerged early Thursday showed a drone crashing in the Al-Bu’aitha area of Baghdad in the presence of security personnel.
The attack came as tensions in the Middle East are rising due to the ongoing conflict sparked by the United States and Israel launching a war against Iran.
On Thursday, new explosions were heard in Qatar and Bahrain.
Resounding violence has spread across the region, with attacks also reported in Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kuwait.
The Saudi Defense Ministry said the last drone sent to its territory was shot down near the al-Jawf region in the country’s north. This came after the ministry announced the interception of three drones east of al-Kharj governorate.
The Oman Oil Marketing Company said one of its storage tanks was damaged in an “incident,” which preliminary assessments showed was only minor. The company said operations at the affected site were suspended, according to the Reuters news agency.
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi called for an end to the war in an article in X. “Oman reaffirms its call for an immediate ceasefire and a return to responsible regional diplomacy,” he wrote. “There are exit ramps available. Let’s use them.”
Kuwait’s Interior Ministry said an explosion occurred aboard an oil tanker outside its territorial waters, more than 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the port of Mubarak al-Kabeer.
He said the entire crew was safe, but the ship had sunk and an oil spill could cause environmental damage.
As tensions across the Middle East remain high, Qatar’s Interior Ministry on Thursday ordered the evacuation of residents living near the US embassy in Doha as a precaution.
Al Jazeera’s Zein Basravi, reporting from Qatar’s capital, said the US embassy complex occupies a “very large area” that is located “in the heart of the city.”
“Many families live in the area, there is a gas station, a shopping center and it is close to a highway,” he said.
Basravi added that the US embassies in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, and the US consulate in Dubai, have been attacked by drones this week.
On Wednesday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it fired 230 drones at several facilities housing US troops in the Middle East, including a base in Erbil in northern Iraq and the Ali Al Salem air base and Camp Arifjan in Kuwait.
The IRGC said the strikes were among its “first powerful steps” in the war, even though Iran has attacked Gulf Arab states for days since Israel and the United States launched their coordinated offensive on Saturday.
President Masoud Pezeshkian addressed Iran’s neighbors directly on Wednesday, saying Iran sought to avoid war through diplomacy but that the attacks by the United States and Israel left it “no choice” but to retaliate.
“We respect your sovereignty,” the president said in two separate posts in Arabic and Persian on X.
Iran believes that security in the region must be achieved through a collective effort, he added.
