A Patriot missile launcher set up in Gaziantep, Turkey, in 2013, with Syria shown in the distance. NATO has increased its missile defense force posture in the region following two missile interceptions from Iran in the past week. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Air raid sirens sounded early Friday at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey, where NATO dispatched a Patriot missile defense team earlier this week to beef up security, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported.
The base, which sits near the eastern edge of the Mediterranean Sea, is home to U.S. forces and also is also well-known as a storage site for American nuclear bombs.
Turkey’s defense ministry on Wednesday confirmed that an Iranian missile was shot down on the same day in the country. Numerous postings from residents in the nearby city of Adana showed a bright object flying overhead in the night sky.
NATO air defenses in the past week have twice intercepted incoming missiles from Iran.
The situation prompted NATO to increase its missile defense force posture. On Tuesday, the Turkish defense ministry announced that an American-made Patriot system had been deployed to Turkey’s Malatya region.
That part of Turkey hosts a critical NATO radar, which is manned by U.S. troops and is part of the alliance’s integrated air defense system.
NATO didn’t specify which unit was deployed to carry out the mission, but several allied countries possess the Patriot system.
In Baumholder, Germany, the U.S. Army has a Patriot unit that over the years has mobilized on short notice for urgent missions. Shortly after Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the unit was sent to Poland to protect NATO airspace.
More than a decade ago, U.S. patriot batteries also were sent to southern Turkey to protect Turkish air space during hostilities along the country’s border with Syria.
