Iran's army said it struck US military bases in Kuwait and the UAE with missiles and drones, targeting the Ahmad al-Jaber base in Kuwait and the Al-Minhad base in the UAE, ILNA reported on September 3, citing the army's public relations office.

The claim is the latest in a run of Iranian retaliation against the Gulf states hosting US forces, a pattern that has turned Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar into exposed rear bases in a war they are not party to, and that steadily raises the risk of the conflict pulling in governments Washington relies on for basing and overflight.

The strikes could not be independently verified, and there was no confirmation from the US, Kuwait or the UAE.

The army, in what it called the 31st stage of its operations, said it had hit satellite communications systems, equipment depots and a fighter-aircraft hangar at Ahmad al-Jaber in Kuwait, causing damage to communications systems and the hangar. It said troop positions and radar systems at Al-Minhad in the UAE were also struck.

Ahmad al-Jaber plays a central role in US logistics and air operations in West Asia, while Al-Minhad is a support and air-transit hub for foreign forces, the army said. It said its response to any US attack would be severe and would continue until what it called the punishment of the aggressor.

The claim followed US Central Command's statement that it struck IRGC targets in Iran on September 1, and days of exchanges in which the US hit the Iranian island of Larak and Iran retaliated against US targets in Jordan and the Gulf.

Gulf states have generally not acknowledged strikes on their territory, and neither side's claims of damage in earlier rounds were independently confirmed.

The war began on February 28, when the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Iran responded by closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world's oil and gas passed before the conflict.