On the early morning of June 3, 2026, air raid sirens blared over Kuwait City, the capital of Kuwait. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran launched ballistic missiles at U.S. military bases in Kuwait and key U.S. positions in the Gulf region, also deploying suicide drones. Some drone and missile debris affected Kuwait International Airport Terminal 1, causing severe damage to the terminal, one death, and 63 injuries. The diplomatic mission residence was also impacted.

Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense identified multiple "hostile drones" directly attacking Terminal 1. Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned Iran "with the strongest language" for "violating international law and the United Nations Charter," announced the closure of its airspace and suspension of all flights, summoned Iran’s chargé d'affaires to deliver a protest note, and declared two Iranian diplomats as "persona non grata" and ordered their departure. The Gulf Cooperation Council, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar also issued condemnations.

There are conflicting accounts—Iran’s Revolutionary Guard denied targeting the airport, claiming the damage to the terminal was caused by failed interception and misfire of U.S. Patriot air defense systems; the U.S. Central Command refuted Iran’s claims, stating Iran "deliberately attacked civilian airports with drones," and reported intercepting Iranian missiles and drones headed for Kuwait and Bahrain, while also conducting "self-defense strikes" against Iranian military facilities on Gasham Island.

After repair assessments, Kuwait International Airport’s Terminals 4 and 5 resumed partial flight operations, but the heavily damaged Terminal 1 cannot be reopened in the short term. This incident marks the direct involvement of Gulf countries, previously acting as buffers in the U.S.-Iran conflict, into the fighting, posing a new and severe challenge to regional security dynamics.