Kuwait: "Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Members Arrested for Infiltrating Military Base"

"Unauthorized Entry to Bubiyan Island Using a Fishing Boat"
Iran: "Vessel Malfunction During Maritime Patrol, Accidental Drift"

The Kuwaiti government has announced that there was an exchange of fire with members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who illegally entered a Kuwaiti military base, and that some of them have been apprehended. While Iran claims that the incident was an accident caused by a vessel malfunction, not an intentional infiltration, military tensions have significantly heightened among the countries throughout the Gulf region.

According to the state-run KUNA news agency on the 12th (local time), Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior issued a statement saying, “On the 1st of this month, we arrested four members of the IRGC who infiltrated the country to carry out a hostile act against Kuwait.” The statement added, “The suspects confessed that they are affiliated with the IRGC.” The Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior reported that these individuals used a fishing boat to infiltrate Bubiyan Island in the Persian Gulf area.

Bubiyan Island is located in northern Kuwait, near the borders with Iraq and Iran, and is home to a military base. In the vicinity of this island, the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port is under construction as part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The Iranian military previously claimed, on April 6, that it had attacked the island with drones, asserting that U.S. military satellite equipment and munitions were stationed there.

According to the Kuwaiti military, a total of six IRGC members infiltrated Bubiyan Island by fishing boat. After being detected by Kuwaiti forces, a firefight ensued, during which two escaped and four were apprehended. It was reported that one Kuwaiti soldier was injured during the exchange. In protest of Iran’s infiltration, Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Iranian ambassador to Kuwait.

The Iranian side maintains that there was no planned infiltration operation. Shortly after the Kuwaiti government’s announcement, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “The claim that Iran is planning a hostile act against Kuwait is completely unfounded,” adding, “We condemn the political exploitation of the Iranian personnel who entered Kuwaiti waters during a maritime patrol mission due to a systems malfunction.”