Iran fired two missiles at the joint British-American Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean but they failed to reach their target, a U.K. minister said Sunday, confirming earlier reports of the number of projectiles.
“Our assessment is that the Iranians certainly targeted Diego Garcia. As we understand it, one missile fell short, failed. The other was intercepted and prevented,” U.K. Housing Secretary Steve Reed told BBC television.
Reed declined to say how far short the missiles fell.
“There is no specific assessment that the Iranians are targeting the U.K. or even could if they wanted to,” Reed added.
Iran targeted Diego Garcia with a two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile, Israel’s military said Saturday. This refers to missiles with at least two rocket engines, one allowing the missile to reach space, and the other propels it to its target, at a range of up to 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles).
