Explosions were heard over Qatar’s capital Doha on Monday, shortly after a Western diplomat said there had been a credible Iranian threat against the US-run al Udeid air base in the Gulf Arab state since midday, reported Reuters citing a witness.
A few hours ago, the US embassy in Qatar told US citizens they should shelter in place “until further notice”. The short statement did not go into any specific detail, but said the alert had been issued “out of an abundance of caution”.
Qatar has temporarily closed its airspace, forcing planes to divert away from Doha – one of the world’s busiest airports.