When the sun set below Doha on June 23, a line of illumination bisected the evening horizon, and thunders shook the air. But it wasn’t an attack that begot death and devastation at least, not yet. It was a highly orchestrated geopolitical drama.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unleashed six ballistic missiles at the U.S. Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the biggest American air base in the region, that night. It was in direct response to U.S. air attacks Operation Midnight Hammer two days before that targeted Iranian nuclear plants. But while the attack may have seemed to be the result of reckless improvisation, a closer look reveals something more sinister.
According to three Iranian officials who spoke with multiple international outlets including The New York Times and Reuters, Iran gave advance notice to Qatari officials, alerting them to the planned attack. The goal? Strike back symbolically, but leave room for diplomacy.
“It was necessary for us to respond to the American aggression,”
declared an Iranian official,
“but we needed a way out too an exit ramp a way to accommodate domestic pressure without involving the region in a full-blown war.”
This was similar to Iran’s 2020 retaliatory missile strikes following the United States killing of General Qasem Soleimani. Iran had provided prior warning before attacking U.S. military targets based in Iraq, only to cause no loss of life.
Qatar’s Ministry of Defense confirmed that all six missiles were intercepted by its air defense systems, with zero casualties or damage. Despite the cooperation, Qatar did not endorse the attack.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry, in a strongly worded statement, termed the airstrike a “flagrant violation of sovereignty” and added,
“Qatar reserves the right to respond, diplomatically or otherwise, to protect its territorial integrity.”
The coordination, however, reflects the tense situation between Qatar and Iran, which often stand on the same front on diplomatic matters despite tensions.
Al-Udeid Air Base outside Doha houses about 10,000 US military personnel and serves CENTCOM’s forward headquarters, directing military operations from Syria to Afghanistan.
When the attack began, American forces had already been dispatched to safety shelters, a U.S. military official informed hypefresh on condition of anonymity.
“We were expecting it. That’s why we knew it was not meant to kill.”
The U.S. Department of Defense confirmed no injuries and said American forces remain on high alert
“given the fluid nature of the regional conflict.”
In contrast, Iranian state media described the operation codenamed “Tidings of Victory” as a “devastating and mighty response.” However, independent verification from Qatar and satellite imagery reveals no structural damage, challenging Tehran’s narrative.
Experts point out the striking similarity to Operation Martyr Soleimani in 2020. Then, like now, Iran opted for a show of force that allowed adversaries time to prepare, minimizing casualties. In both cases, the number of missiles roughly matched the U.S. offensive highlighting a tit-for-tat strategy more about messaging than mayhem.
“This wasn’t an act of war,”
said Middle East analyst Will Wechsler,
“it was performance warfare.”
The attack comes against the background of heightened U.S.–Iran–Israel tensions, more specifically since Israeli involvement in a string of United States attacks on Iranian nuclear sites at Natanz, Fordow, and Esfahan. In a joint Iranian operation, global oil prices were temporarily lifted and airspaces closed across Qatar, Bahrain, and the UAE, grounding air traffic and raising fears of a regionwide flare-up.
The global community demanded restraint shortly thereafter. The EU, Russia, and China demanded diplomacy, and the United States watched closely at its aftermath since they feared a slip-up in a region on heightened tensions already thanks to a Red Sea standoff involving Iranian-backed Houthi rebels.