US Centcom Reiterates That US Planes Mistakenly Shot Down By Kuwaiti Air Defences.

Washington DC; March 2026: United States Central Command has reiterated that 03 US F-15E fighter jets flying in support of operations against Iran went down over Kuwait in a friendly fire incident. All the 06 air crew had ejected safely, have been safely recovered and are in a stable condition, CENTCOM said. The cause of the incident was under investigation, it added.

Earlier, several US military aircraft crashed in Kuwait today, but all crew members survived and were in stable condition, Kuwait’s Ministry of Defence said. In a separate incident, smoke was seen rising from the vicinity of the US Embassy compound in Kuwait City, and fire trucks and ambulances were in the area, a witness told reporters. There were no responses to requests for comment on the embassy incident from the US Embassy in Kuwait, or from the US State Department.

Kuwait intercepted hostile drones earlier today, the third consecutive day of Iranian retaliatory strikes on neighbouring Gulf states in response to US and Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic. The Kuwait Defence Ministry statement, which was carried by the state news agency, said the crews from the crashed aircraft were evacuated and transferred to hospital and were in stable condition. It added that the response was carried out in coordination with US forces.

Iran’s state media cited the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as saying Iranian armed forces hit a US plane that had crashed in the Al Jahra area of Kuwait showed a military aircraft falling from the sky and a person parachuting in the same shot. The Kuwaiti statement did not specify how many aircraft were involved.

Iran has carried out missile strikes on the US Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait and on enemy vessels in the northern part of the Indian Ocean, the military reported.

Furthermore, a drone strike hit a British air base in Cyprus overnight, causing limited damage and no casualties, Cypriot and British officials said today, in a marked escalation effectively dragging an EU member state into the conflict surrounding Iran. The strike, which hit a runway at the Royal Air Force base of Akrotiri, was the first attack on the military facility since a rocket attack by Libyan militants in 1986. It shook the east Mediterranean island, a holiday hotspot and home to thousands of foreign companies.

Britain had moved additional air assets to Akrotiri in anticipation of U.S. action against Iran in preceding weeks while saying British bases would not be used. On Sunday late evening (local time), however, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain had accepted a U.S. request to use its bases for defensive strikes against Iranian missiles in storage depots or launchers.

British foreign minister Yvette Cooper said the U.S. had not requested access to the Akrotiri air base.

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said in a speech that the Shahed-type unmanned aerial vehicle caused minor damage when it crashed into the military facilities at 00:03 hours (local time).

It was not immediately clear from where the Iranian-made Shahed had been fired. Official sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told media outlets that the British bases intercepted a second drone, but one of the sources later said it was ‘one drone’. “All the competent services of the republic are on alert and in full operational readiness”, Christodoulides said.

Akrotiri base, south-west of the sprawling coastal city of Limassol, is one of two bases Britain has retained in the former colony since independence in 1960. In addition to the military facilities, it houses families of serving personnel. Although the bases are regarded as British sovereign territory, Cyprus itself is an EU member, now holding the bloc’s rotating presidency.

Britain has no legal obligation to inform Cyprus of its use in military operations, but it is customary for London to inform Nicosia of activity. “I want to be clear: Our country does not participate in any way and does not intend to be part of any military operation”, Christodoulides said.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc stood by all its member states in the face of any threat. “While the Republic of Cyprus was not the target, let me be clear: we stand collectively, firmly and unequivocally with our Member States in the face of any threat”, von der Leyen said in a post on X.

On Sunday, British defence secretary John Healey said Britain had intercepted two missiles fired in the direction of Cyprus, but added he didn’t believe Cyprus was deliberately targeted.

An EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told media reporters they believed Iran was trying to expand the conflict and drag Europeans into it.

Team Maverick.