Iran claims US patriot missile, not Iranian strike, destroyed Kuwait airport terminal

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) spokesperson Hossein Mohbi claimed on Wednesday that a US-made Patriot missile was responsible for the destruction of the passenger terminal building at Kuwait International Airport.

According to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, Mohbi said an investigation had been conducted into the attack on the airport terminal, claiming that the IRGC Air Force had not targeted the facility.

He said the findings showed that the destruction of the terminal was caused by a malfunction in US Patriot air defence systems, which failed to intercept Iranian missiles and instead fell onto the building.

Earlier on Wednesday, the IRGC said in a statement that it had targeted what it described as US military bases and sites in Kuwait and Bahrain. The attack was presented as a response to strikes that Iran said had been launched from the two countries against an oil tanker and Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz region.

Kuwait’s Ministry of Defence, meanwhile, said one person was killed and 63 others were injured in an Iranian attack involving 13 missiles and 17 drones. The ministry also reported extensive material damage.