The Central Command of the US Army, CENTCOM, denied on Friday 13 November 2026 the destruction of an American radar in Bahrain claimed by Iran. He claims that his forces shot down two drones launched by the Revolutionary Guards into the kingdom. According to his statement, no one was injured and no damage was found.
This response, published on X and reported by several news agencies, brings the American version of an episode announced earlier by Tehran. It does not constitute an independent confirmation of the interceptions. The exact time of operations and their location are not specified in the command’s brief text.
American Radar in Bahrain: two opposite versions
The Revolutionary Guards said on Friday that their aerospace force had targeted and destroyed an American early warning radar. Their communiqué number 22 presented the operation as a response to an air attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik, southern Iran.
The Iranian text did not give the name of the site in Bahrain, the radar model, or its exact location. Nor did it indicate the means used. The destruction announced remained unconfirmed when our first article on this claim was published.
CENTCOM now challenges this result and provides a number of vehicles: two single-use drones. He assigns them to the Guardians of the Revolution and assures that they have both been killed. It does not describe the defences used.
Sirik, the ground invoked by Tehran
The Iranian claim refers to the events of Thursday 12 November in Sirik, in the province of Hormozgan, near the Strait of Ormuz. The Iranian official press reported an attack by quoting official sources, without a detailed record.
In their Friday communiqué, the Guardians designate a telecommunications tower as the target of the attack they say they are responding to. This explanation remains that of the Iranian military organization. The American denial of radar in Bahrain does not specify the circumstances of Sirik’s episode.
The Guardians accompany their claim with a warning regarding air operations and oil navigation in the Strait of Ormuz. They threaten more severe measures in case of repeated actions they denounce. These threats do not constitute the verified announcement of a new operation.
An incident in an open confrontation
The episode comes during a fragile lull in the conflict between the United States and Israel on 28 February against Iran. Tehran then attacked American bases in the Gulf countries and sought to restrict navigation in the Strait of Ormuz. Washington imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports.
The denial of CENTCOM relates precisely to the claim of 13 November in Bahrain. It is neither an announcement of an end to hostilities nor an agreement on navigation. The documents consulted do not allow for the independent determination of drone trajectories or means of intercepting them. The US response does not publish these details.
Coverage: Iranian flags in Qom, photograph of archives of 6 May 2011, without visual link to the events in Bahrain. Photo Mostafa Meraji / Wikimedia Commons, CC0; cropping and titration Libnanews.
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