US denies IRGC's claim of striking airbase in Saudi Arabia
An E-3 AWACS aircraft deployed to the 363rd Air Expeditionary Wing takes off for a mission during a sand storm March 25. SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck the Prince Sultan Air Base in Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, accommodating 200 personnel at the time on March 28, according to Iranian news agencies.
Brigadier General Majid Mousavi posted on his X account on Tuesday, saying the attack successfully hit the US aircrew gathering. “Today, we attacked the accommodation of US pilots and aircrew in Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia, using drones and missiles, hitting a gathering of 200 individuals,” he said.
“Now, in addition to the strikes on AWACS, tankers, and fuel depots, there is also a list of casualties and damages among the aircrew in the list of Trump and Hegseth’s losses and damages,” he said.
The NPR report stated that at least 15 US service members were wounded and two E-3 Sentry aircraft were damaged, according to the Associated Press, including at least five in serious condition.
However, US forces have refuted this claim. US Central Command posted on X, saying, "IRGC leaders said the same thing for Dubai on March 28."
🚫 CLAIM: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it attacked the residence of American pilots and aircrew in Saudi Arabia with a drone and missile, impacting a gathering of 200 people.
✅ FACT: IRGC leaders said the same thing for Dubai on March 28. The Iranian… pic.twitter.com/zPj4mldrxPShehryar Pasandideh, a Columbia University PhD candidate and military analyst, reposted Iran's satellite photos of the strike at the Al-Kharj base, showcasing both pre and post-attack images.
🇮🇷🇸🇦🇺🇸 Satellite images released by Iran exhibit indicators of damage and firefighting activity at a part of Saudi Arabia's al-Kharj/Prince Sultan airbase that is known to host large American aircraft, including aerial refuelling/tanker aircraft. The details are to be determined. https://t.co/JAPjXbWmL4 pic.twitter.com/exJ2EvBTKQ
Earlier, an oil tanker leased to state-owned QatarEnergy was hit by an Iranian cruise missile on Wednesday in Qatari waters, the defence ministry said.
Shahid Haghani Port, Iran's largest passenger terminal located in Bandar Abbas port on the Gulf, was hit by an overnight air strike, but there were no casualties, the deputy governor Ahmad Nafisi told state media, calling it a "criminal" attack against civilian infrastructure.
Gulf countries, some home to US bases, have been repeatedly fired on by Tehran during the US-Israeli war, with concerns mounting about Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz and ability to use the vital waterway, a conduit for a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas, as a bargaining chip.
While the United States has said talks with Iran were ongoing, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that he has been receiving direct messages from US special envoy Steve Witkoff, but those do not constitute "negotiations", Al Jazeera reported him as saying.
US and Israeli forces launched a large-scale unprovoked military campaign against Iran following the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with several senior military commanders and civilians, on February 28.