Sirens Heard at Incirlik Air Base, Key NATO Facility in South Türkiye

İncirlik Air Base in Adana, southern Türkiye (AFP)
İncirlik Air Base in Adana, southern Türkiye (AFP)
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Sirens Heard at Incirlik Air Base, Key NATO Facility in South Türkiye

İncirlik Air Base in Adana, southern Türkiye (AFP)
İncirlik Air Base in Adana, southern Türkiye (AFP)

Sirens were heard early on Friday at Türkiye’s Incirlik airbase, a key NATO facility where US troops are stationed near the southeastern city of Adana, state news agency Anadolu reported.

There was no immediate official comment on the incident, which took place four days after NATO air defenses shot down a ballistic missile in Turkish airspace that was fired from Iran, the second in five days.

Residents of Adana, which lies 10 kilometers (six miles) away from the base, were woken at around 3:25 am (0025 GMT) by sirens, which sounded for around five minutes, according to the Ekonomim business news website.

It said a red alert sounded at the base.

Several people posted mobile phone footage on social media of a glowing image flying through the sky, suggesting it could be a missile heading for the airbase, it said.

Across the city, sirens from fire engines and the security forces could be heard for a long time, it added.

NATO said it shot down a second ballistic missile fired from Iran on Monday, prompting a stern warning from Türkiye to Tehran not to take "provocative steps".

The announcement came shortly after Washington said it was closing down its consulate in Adana, urging all American citizens to leave southeastern Türkiye.

Since the US-Israeli war against Iran started, Tehran has launched strikes across the Middle East. Türkiye had appeared to have been spared.

As well as Incirlik airbase, US troops are also stationed at Kurecik, another Turkish base that is a NATO facility in the center of the country, where a Patriot missile defense system was deployed on Tuesday.

A first missile had been intercepted by NATO defenses in Turkish air space on March 4.



Russian Missile Kills Three on Bus in East Ukraine

This photograph shows residential buildings heavily damaged by a Russian air strike at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, where more than 50 people were killed, in the center of the city of Izium, Kharkiv region on March 10, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows residential buildings heavily damaged by a Russian air strike at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, where more than 50 people were killed, in the center of the city of Izium, Kharkiv region on March 10, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Russian Missile Kills Three on Bus in East Ukraine

This photograph shows residential buildings heavily damaged by a Russian air strike at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, where more than 50 people were killed, in the center of the city of Izium, Kharkiv region on March 10, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
This photograph shows residential buildings heavily damaged by a Russian air strike at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, where more than 50 people were killed, in the center of the city of Izium, Kharkiv region on March 10, 2026, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

A Russian strike in eastern Ukraine on Friday killed three people on a bus near the embattled town of Kupiansk, which Moscow's army is battling to recapture, investigators said.

The wider Kharkiv region, which borders Russia, was partly occupied when Russian forces invaded in February 2022, but was largely liberated by Ukraine months later.

"Three people were killed as a result of the strike: the bus driver and two passengers," local investigators announced.

The bus was near the village of Nova Oleksandrivka when it was hit by an Iskandr missile, they added. Investigators posted images of a red bus with its windows blown out.

There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin, which claims its forces do not target civilians.

Peace talks spearheaded by the United States aiming to halt more than four years of fighting have been derailed by the US-Israeli war with Iran.

Russia's invasion sparked the bloodiest war in Europe since World War II, forcing the displacement of millions and leaving hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians dead on both sides.


Türkiye Says Third Ballistic Missile from Iran Shot Down

 This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
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Türkiye Says Third Ballistic Missile from Iran Shot Down

 This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released on March 9, 2026, by Turkish news agency DHA (Demiroren News Agency) shows part of a second Iranian ballistic missile destroyed by NATO in Turkish airspace. (Photo by Handout / DHA (Demiroren News Agency) / AFP)

Türkiye’s defense ministry on Friday said a ballistic missile from Iran had been shot down in Turkish airspace by NATO forces in the third such incident of the Middle East war. 

"A ballistic munition launched from Iran and entering Turkish airspace was neutralized by NATO air and missile defense assets deployed in the eastern Mediterranean," a ministry statement said. 

Hours earlier, sirens wailed at Türkiye’s southern Incirlik airbase, a key NATO facility where US troops are stationed, state news agency Anadolu reported. 

Local media also reported sirens in Batman, 600 kilometers (370 miles) further east. 

NATO air defenses shot down a first ballistic missile fired from Iran on March 4, with a second intercepted on Monday. 

Residents of the southern city of Adana, next to Incirlik, were woken by sirens at 3:25 am (0025 GMT) and several posted footage of a fast-moving object that appeared to be on fire, the Ekonomim business news website reported. 

Separately, sirens sounded in Batman around 4:00 am, with reporters saying the alarm appeared to be coming from a military drone base next to the city's airport. 

Monday's incident prompted Washington to close its consulate in Adana and urge all US citizens to leave southeastern Türkiye. 

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian denied the missile had been fired from Iran in a phone call to Türkiye’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 

Since the US-Israeli war on Iran started on February 28, Tehran has retaliated with strikes across the Middle East. 

Incirlik is an important NATO facility used by US troops for decades, but which also hosts military personnel from Spain and Poland, its website says. 

US troops are also stationed at Kurecik, a base in the central Malatya province, where they man an early-warning radar system NATO describes as a "key element" of its missile shield that can detect Iranian missile launches. 

Although Ankara has categorically denied radar data has ever been used to help Israel, its presence has rattled Tehran. 

On Tuesday, Türkiye said a Patriot missile defense system was being deployed in Malatya just days after NATO moved to strengthen its "alliance-wide ballistic missile defense posture". 


Russia Says It Doesn't See Iran Crisis Reducing US Interest in Ukraine Peace Talks

FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, January 22, 2026. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, January 22, 2026. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/File Photo
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Russia Says It Doesn't See Iran Crisis Reducing US Interest in Ukraine Peace Talks

FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, January 22, 2026. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, January 22, 2026. REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/File Photo

Russia is not concerned at this point that the Iran crisis will reduce US interest in mediating ‌peace talks ‌on Ukraine, ‌Kremlin ⁠spokesman Dmitry Peskov said ⁠on Friday.

"No, there are no such concerns at ⁠this time; our ‌contacts with ‌our American ‌counterparts provide ‌no grounds for such doubts," Peskov told reporters in ‌response to a question.

Russia is ⁠expecting ⁠a new round of negotiations, but has nothing to announce yet on the timing, he said.