The Kuwait General Civil Aviation Authority has released CCTV footage showing the moment Iranian drones struck Terminal 1 of Kuwait International Airport, revealing extensive damage and triggering renewed regional tensions. The 69-second video, shared by Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) on social media platform X, captures multiple angles of the blast, including rooftop, exterior, and interior views of the civilian airport facility.
The footage begins with a rooftop camera recording a sudden explosion that erupts into a bright orange fireball above the terminal building. Thick black smoke rises almost immediately, engulfing the structure as the blast impacts the airport complex in broad daylight. The scale and speed of the explosion highlight the intensity of the strike, which officials say caused widespread destruction across one of the Gulf region’s busiest aviation hubs.
A second camera angle positioned outside the terminal shows the explosion detonating just beyond the roofline, with the shockwave visibly pushing debris across nearby parking areas filled with vehicles. The force of the blast is seen spreading rapidly outward, followed by a dense cloud of smoke and fire that expands across the airport premises, indicating significant structural damage to the building.
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The most striking footage comes from inside the terminal, where an interior CCTV camera captures a sudden white-yellow flash that completely engulfs the frame. Passengers can be seen moments before the explosion as they move through the terminal, before the blast overtakes the hall. In the aftermath, chaos is visible as individuals flee the scene, while the interior is momentarily illuminated by the impact before the feed is overwhelmed.
Subsequent ground-level visuals show severe destruction inside the airport, with burnt debris, twisted metal, and water-damaged rubble scattered across the terminal floor. Escalators and structural elements remain partially intact in the background, while much of the passenger area appears reduced to a charred wreckage site. Exterior shots further show the roof structure torn open, exposing steel frameworks, with emergency responders visible amid the damaged site.
According to KUNA, the strike resulted in casualties, injuries, and extensive material damage to airport infrastructure. Iranian forces, however, have denied targeting the facility, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claiming the damage was caused by a malfunction in a US-made Patriot air defence system. The United States Central Command has strongly rejected that assertion, calling it “totally false,” as competing narratives continue to fuel tensions in the region.
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