Middle East

Drone attack on Italian base in Kuwait, no injuries. Tajani: 'We will not be intimidated'

The Chief of Defence Staff, General Luciano Portolano: a drone hit a shelter at the Ali Al Salem base, inside which was a remotely piloted aircraft of the Italian Air Task Force, which was destroyed. Defence Minister Crosetto: "The military personnel present were not involved in the attack"

by Andrea Carli

15 March 2026

Una vista satellitare mostra la base Ali Al Salem, in Kuwait

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Key points

Portolano: destroyed Italia drone was indispensable for our operations
The partial evacuation of the base

3' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

"This morning the base of Ali Al Salem, in Kuwait, which houses American and Italian capabilities and personnel, was the target of a drone attack that hit a shelter, inside which was housed a remotely piloted aircraft of the Italian Air Task Force, which was destroyed." Announcing the news was the Chief of Defence Staff, General Luciano Portolano, in a post on X published at 14:27.

The Predator Drone

The destroyed drone, an MQ-9A REAPER 'Predator-B' worth 34 million, was used in the 'Prima Parthica' operation under the command of Air Force Colonel Marco Mangini. It was used for surveillance, reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering missions in Coalition activities aimed at defeating Isis.

"The stricken aircraft," Portolano stressed in the post, "was an indispensable asset for the conduct of operational activities and had remained deployed at the base in order to ensure the continuity of operations. The situation is constantly monitored by the Chief of Defence Staff and the Inter-Forces Summit Operations Command, which maintain continuous contact with the contingents on the ground".

Tajani: 'Strengthening the Aspides mission'

"No risks and no problems for our military," Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told Tg4 Diario on Sunday. "We are not intimidated, we will keep our international commitments," he added.

Moreover, the Farnesina titular explained that "tomorrow (Monday, 16 March, ed.) in Brussels I will reiterate the need for a common position" on the part of Europe regarding the conflict between Iran, the US and Israel. "Everything that needs to be done at this stage must always be coordinated with the EU," he added, "so much so that we will be ready to support the strengthening of the Aspides mission in the Red Sea. Finally, he added that "no European country has given military readiness to force Hormuz.

Opposition leaders were reportedly briefed by Defence Minister Guido Crosetto regarding the attack on the Ali Al Salem base.

Crosetto: 'The government is following with the utmost attention'

In the evening, a note from Defence Minister Guido Crosetto. "Together with the President of the Council and the entire government, I am following the evolution of the security picture in the area with the utmost attention, in constant contact with the Chief of Defence Staff, with the Inter-Forces Summit Operations Command (COVI) and directly with the commanders in the field."

Italian device "lightened by days"

"I immediately contacted Colonel Mangini to inquire about the condition of the Italia personnel on the base. At the time of the attack, all personnel were safe and uninvolved. I promptly informed Defence Minister Crosetto of the incident, with whom I am in constant contact to continuously update the situation of all our contingents abroad," said Defence Chief of Staff Luciano Portolano.

The general recalls that 'the Italian Task Force Air device had been previously lightened in recent days, as part of the measures adopted in relation to the evolving security situation in the area. The personnel remaining at the base are employed to carry out the essential activities of the mission'.

Il Capo di Stato maggiore della Difesa Luciano Portolano (Photo LaPresse)

The partial evacuation of the base

As far as Italia personnel are concerned, as Portolano confirmed, a partial evacuation has already been ordered in recent days, with a movement of 239 military personnel to Saudi Arabia: of the 321, 82 will remain.

Crosetto said that "in the past few days military personnel had already been reduced, leaving only essential personnel at the base". He added that "Italian Defence carries out in that area an important activity of cooperation with Kuwait and, more generally, with the Gulf countries friendly to Italia, in the mission known as Italian national contingent command air - Task force air Kuwait started already in 2014". Crosetto reiterated that "all the Italian military personnel present at the base were safe and were not involved in the attack".

Andrea CarliRedattore
- @AncarliCarli
Luogo: Roma
Lingue parlate: Italiano, inglese e francese
Argomenti: Politica estera e geopolitica
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