Alistair Bunkall: Middle East Correspondent on Iran's attack on the US base in Qatar

Flares have lit up the sky above Doha following threats Iran would retaliate against US strikes on its nuclear sites. 

Iran's also reportedly launched an attack on another US base in Iraq.  

Qatar has confirmed no deaths following Iranian missile attacks on an US Air Force Base Al Udeid.  

Qatar closed its airspace earlier amid threats from Iran, and a flight from Auckland to Doha has since been diverted to Oman's Muscat Airport. 

Middle East Correspondent Alistair Bunkall told Ryan Bridge that Iran had to respond in some way to the attacks, but this could be the end of their response. 

He says it could provide an off-ramp for the conflict, but it depends on the way Donald Trump sees it. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We've been waiting for Iran to respond, while they've done.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
In the last hour, they have attacked you with spaces
in Iraq and Katar. So far, no injuries or deaths
or casualties have been reported that according to the Pentagon
via Fox News in the last couple of minutes. Alistair
Buncle is the Middle East correspondent from Sky News with
US this morning. Alistair, what is the latest on these attacks?

Speaker 3 (00:23):
Well, I mean, the only confirmed attack is the one
on Kata, on the Alu Ded Air Base, which is
the biggest American air base in the region. The Iranians
reportedly fired ten missiles, saying they are saying fired a
missile for every missile that the Americans fired at them
when the Americans attacked the nuclear bases over the weekend.

(00:45):
I'm not sure that figure exactly tallies, but we haven't
heard more reports from Iraq at the moment. On the
one hand, it is a major major escalation. Iran attacking
a GCC country in the Middle East, a country like
Katar is a huge escalation. But we knew the Arenas

(01:08):
would have to respond in some way. This is well start,
possibly the end of their response, and no reports of casualties,
so possibly, you know, it does provide everybody with a
bit of an off ramp. But then it depends on
the way President Trump sees it.

Speaker 1 (01:30):
Does the fact that there are no casualties indicate that
the Americans, because they had been warning their own citizens
and Kata for a couple of days, and we heard
from the UK in the last couple of hours that
these citizens should be aware in Kata, is it possible
that they did give them a well, that they were
no one about and that you know, that's why we
didn't see any casualties.

Speaker 3 (01:50):
Yeah, I reckon so, to be honest, we don't know
that officially, but I think that's probably very likely. The
Ataris are pretty close to the Uranians. Katar hosts the
leadership of Hummas, for example, an Iranian proxy, but they're
also closely the Americans. They host major US military bases.

(02:11):
And my sense from covering these things for many years
is that this would have been known about. There would
have been a maybe not more than a few hours,
but there would have been some notification that this was happening,
and it would have allowed everybody to ensure that there

(02:33):
were no US forces above ground. They were either not
at the base or they were underground in safety. Ditto
to the British. The British have a very large military
personnel at that air base. I understand that they had
evacuated it in the recent days and so if that's accurate,
then what it does is it gives run the kind

(02:55):
of the story to say, look, we have attacked the
biggest US in the region, and it gives the Americans
the ability to sort of back away having suffered no damage.

Speaker 1 (03:07):
Alistair appreciate that analysis. This morning, Alistair Bunkle, who's the
Middle East correspondent for Sky News, confirming there that there
have been a missiles fired from Iran into a US
air base in Katar, though apparently intercepted. No injuries or
casualties reported at this stage. Iran has said that they

(03:27):
have fired missiles not just at US air bases and Kata,
but also in Iraq, as Alistair says that hasn't been confirmed.

Speaker 2 (03:36):
For more from earlier edition with Ryan Bridge.

Speaker 3 (03:39):
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