Qatar Airways suspends flights amid attacks on US military base in Doha

GLOBAL airline company Qatar Airways has temporarily suspended its flights due to the closure of air traffic movement in the State of Qatar.

The move comes after Iran’s National Security Council confirmed an attack on a US military base in Qatar on Monday evening.  

Qatar Airways said it was working closely with government stakeholders and the relevant authorities to support impacted passengers, and will resume operations when the airspace reopens.

 “Once usual operations resume, we anticipate significant delays to our flight schedule. We have also deployed additional ground staff at Hamad International Airport and other key airports to assist affected passengers. The safety of our passengers and crew remains our highest priority,” the airline said in a statement.

Bright flashes lit up the night sky and blasts echoed across wealthy Doha in an attack that followed US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend.

The missiles targeted Al Udeid Air Base, targeted the biggest US military facility in the Middle East, in what Qatar's foreign ministry condemned as a "flagrant violation" of its sovereignty.

"We affirm that the State of Qatar reserves the right to respond directly in a manner proportional to the nature and scale of this blatant aggression," foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari added in a statement.

Air traffic was suspended over Qatar, neighbouring Bahrain and Kuwait. Qatar's defence ministry said there were no deaths or injuries.

Qatar's interior ministry said that the security situation was "stable" and there was "no cause for concern".

A US defence official in Washington said Al Udeid was "attacked by short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles originating from Iran".

Iran's National Security Council confirmed the attack on Al Udeid, insisting it did not "pose any threat" to Qatar.