Sirens across Bahrain before dawn: Iran sends six drones at a US radar, two days after the last two were shot down
Bahrain told everyone in the country to get to the nearest safe place before dawn on Sunday, its first nationwide alert since September, as explosions were heard and its air defences destroyed Iranian drones. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said six drones had targeted a US air-defence radar at the Rifaa helicopter base. It was the second attack on Bahrain in three days, and it lands as talks to end the war have stalled.
Live updates
- 5.05pm AWSTLatest
No damage or casualties reported. The US military has not commented on Sunday's attack.
- About 11.30am AWST
A second series of explosions is heard in Bahrain around 6.30am local time.
- Morning AWST
Iran's Revolutionary Guards say six drones targeted a US air-defence radar at the Rifaa helicopter base, and declare the Strait of Hormuz closed.
- About 9am AWST
Sirens and explosions in Bahrain around 4am local time; the Interior Ministry tells residents to go to the nearest safe location, its first nationwide alert since September.
This page checks for new updates automatically.
Three things to know
- Explosions were heard around 4am Bahrain time (9am AWST) and again around 6.30am (11.30am AWST); Bahrain's military said it destroyed "a number of" Iranian aerial attacks before they reached their targets.
- No damage or casualties have been reported, and the US military has not yet commented on Sunday's attack.
- On Friday the US said it shot down both drones Iran sent at Bahrain, with no damage, after Iran claimed it had destroyed a US radar.
Bahrain’s air defences shot down Iranian drones before dawn on Sunday, after the kingdom’s Interior Ministry twice urged citizens and residents to stay calm and go to the nearest safe location. It was Bahrain’s first nationwide public warning since September.
Blasts were heard around 4am local time (9am AWST) and a second series around 6.30am (11.30am AWST). The Bahrain Defence Force said its air defences had “intercepted and destroyed” several Iranian aerial attacks, and accused Iran of a “systematic hostile approach” towards the kingdom.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said six drones from its aerospace force had targeted a US air-defence radar at the Rifaa helicopter base, in retaliation for what it called hostile US actions. It also declared the Strait of Hormuz closed and warned of a harsher response to any aggression.
Neither the US nor Bahrain has confirmed that the base was hit, and no damage or casualties have been reported. As of Sunday evening AWST, the US military had made no public statement on the attack.
Why does Bahrain matter?
Bahrain is home to the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, the force that patrols the Gulf and the approaches to the Strait of Hormuz. An attack on Bahrain is an attack on the centre of the US naval presence in the region.
Is this an escalation?
It is the second in three days. On Friday the Revolutionary Guards said they had destroyed a US early-warning radar in Bahrain; US Central Command said two Iranian drones were shot down and nothing was damaged. Friday’s attempt was Iran’s first on a military site in a Gulf state in more than two months.
The timing is pointed. On Saturday US President Donald Trump said he might hold off on attacks on Iran if there were no new provocations from Tehran or the Houthis in Yemen, while keeping the US naval blockade in place. Saudi Arabia has also said it intercepted ballistic missiles fired at Riyadh by the Houthis, and on Friday Gulf Arab states demanded Iran pay full compensation and asked the UN Security Council to act.
What does it mean for the rest of us?
The war that began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on 28 February has kept shipping through the Strait of Hormuz restricted for eight months. Any fresh threat to the strait feeds straight into oil prices, and from there into what Australians pay at the bowser.
VNN will update this story as more is confirmed.
How we got here
The key moments that brought this story into focus. Open any moment for detail.
28 February 2026War begins
US and Israeli strikes on Iran start the war.
Since early 2026Hormuz squeezed
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz stays restricted for eight months.
September 2026Last alert
Bahrain's previous nationwide public-safety warning.
13 November 2026First attempt in months
Iran claims it destroyed a US radar in Bahrain; the US says it shot down both drones with no damage.
14 November 2026Gulf demands
Gulf Arab states demand compensation from Iran; Trump signals he may hold off on attacks if provocations stop.
15 November 2026Second attack
Bahrain's air defences destroy Iranian drones after a nationwide alert.
What happens next
Watch for a US Central Command statement on Sunday's attack and for any US response, which Trump has tied to whether Iran and the Houthis stop provocations. Bahrain and its Gulf neighbours have already taken their case to the UN Security Council.
Sources
- VNN
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