IRGC says it targeted US air defense radar at Bahrain's Al-Rifaa base

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced on Sunday that its Aerospace Force targeted a radar at the US Al-Rifaa base in Bahrain, describing the action as the "second phase of a decisive and crushing response to [US] aggression." In a statement, the IRGC said the drone strike was precise and successful, and that its impact was heard in various parts of Bahrain, demonstrating the IRGC's operational capabilities. The statement also criticized the United States for attempting to divert global attention from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz through what it called limited and indiscriminate actions, following what the IRGC described as a failed operation presented as an escort mission but aimed at smuggling oil through the strategic waterway.

The IRGC further declared that the Strait of Hormuz is closed and warned that any aggression by the American enemy would be met with a harsher and more crushing response. It said that more drones were dispatched against US targets in this phase than in the previous one, and warned that every act of aggression would prompt a tough and calculated response. On Friday, the IRGC had announced that it destroyed a US military early-warning radar in Bahrain in a precision strike by its Aerospace Force. The statement called the Bahrain strike a serious warning to the aggressor enemy to cease its aerial provocations and oil smuggling in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Mehr News, the IRGC's statement was released on Sunday morning, and the agency reported that the IRGC rebuked the United States for its actions in the region. The report added that the IRGC emphasized the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and vowed further responses to any aggression.