The U.S. Air Force was confirmed on July 27 to have deployed a B-52H nuclear capable strategic bomber two days prior for a 32 hour flight across the Middle East, in response to attacks by local paramilitaries on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria on July 25 and July 26. The aircraft was based on Romania, and flew over the Mediterranean Sea, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, before reaching the Persian Gulf and turning back. The B-52 mission demonstrated ”extensive options … for fielding combat-ready forces to protect and defend the region from adversary aggression,” Air Forces Central (AFCENT) stated in a July 27 press release. The operation also closely coincided with rising tensions between Israel and the Lebanese paramilitary group Hezbollah, which have been exchanging fire since October 2023. The overflight over Saudi Arabia was also interpreted as a show of force to the Yemeni Ansurullah Coalition.
During its flight the B-52 bomber flew alongside locally based A-10 attack jets, and notably also with Qatari Air Force F-15QA fighters. Regarding the importance of the participation of Qatari fighters in this show of force, a U.S. official speaking to Air Force Magazine elaborated: “These missions amplify the U.S.’s ability to integrate with coalition forces and regional partners while demonstrating the strategic bomber fleet’s ability to operate anywhere with decisive impacts.” Qatar has been a leading partner for the United States and broader Western world in the region, with the U.S. Air Force having relocated significant assets to the country from the United Arab Emirates following a decline in relations with Abu Dhabi. Qatar played a central role in supporting Western efforts to create and strengthen insurgencies in Syria and Libya in the early 2010s, with its special forces having played a central role on the ground in facilitating NATO’s operation in 2011 to forcefully overthrow the Libyan government. A second B-52 was notably initially planned to take part in the show of force, with radio transmissions confirming that “the second aircraft had a mechanical problem and did not take off.” The U.S. Embassy in Doha originally stated that two B-52s would fly over Qatar.