Iran launches retaliatory strike on US military base in Qatar

Iran has launched at least 10 missiles toward Qatar, which hosts the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East

By Cheyenne McNeill

National Affairs Fellow

Published June 23, 2025 1:37PM (EDT)

Iranian protesters chant slogans and one holds a poster with a vampire-like illustration of US President Donald Trump in Revolution Square to protest US attacks on nuclear sites in Iran on June 22, 2025 in Tehran, Iran. (Getty Images)
Iranian protesters chant slogans and one holds a poster with a vampire-like illustration of US President Donald Trump in Revolution Square to protest US attacks on nuclear sites in Iran on June 22, 2025 in Tehran, Iran. (Getty Images)

Iran launched an attack on a U.S. military base in Qatar on Monday in response to the American bombing of its nuclear sites on Saturday. A spokesperson for the Qatar Foreign Minister said that there were no casualties. 

Al Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. base in the Middle East, had been on high alert for potential retaliatory attacks since the U.S. launched airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on Saturday, joining up with the Israeli military campaign.

Axios reported that around 10 missiles were launched toward Qatar and at least one launched toward Iraq. Iran says the missile strikes on Qatar were the same number of bombs used in the U.S. military’s assault on Saturday. 

A video on X appears to show U.S. defense systems intercepting the missiles. 

"We neither began the war, nor did we ask for it; but we won't let the aggression against the great Iran go unanswered," Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on X before the attack. 

Ahead of the strike, the U.S. embassy in Qatar issued a shelter in place to Americans citizens in the country on Monday out of an “abundance of caution.” Qatar also shut down its airspace “to ensure the safety of citizens, residents, and visitors” on Monday.

The guidance follows Sunday’s Worldwide Caution Security Alert from the U.S. State Department, which advised U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution after the U.S. joined Israel in launching airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.

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