Eight Countries Have Now Joined the U.S.-Led War Effort Against Iran

Following Israel and the United States’ initiation of a coordinated large-scale military assault against Iran on February 28, multiple countries have joined the war effort, which has been launched with the explicit goal of removing the Iranian government from power. The United States has used military bases in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait and possibly Israel to support its air campaign against Iranian targets, with bases in all these targets having come under attack. Iran has also launched precision strikes on buildings, including hotels, that are reported to host U.S. and Israeli personnel, with Iranian sources reporting that the dispersal of personnel away from major bases was intended to keep them safe.

Iranian ballistic missile strikes have been responded to with intense missile defence operations by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which have employed their own air defence systems to protect U.S. bases and other targets from Iranian strikes, making them direct participants in the war effort. The possibility of Gulf states deploying their air forces, which include some of the region’s most sophisticated fighter types, to launch retaliatory strikes on Iran, has been speculated by analysts. Alongside the United States, Israel, and the five aforementioned Gulf states, the United Kingdom has also announced its participation in the war effort, with Defence Secretary John Healey referring to the Iranian government as “abhorrent,” in line with the broader consensus in the Western world regarding the need for attacks to ensure its destruction. Royal Air Force Eurofighters which were pre-positioned in Qatar in January are reported to have been scrambled to support air defence efforts.