Iranian planners now see U.S. missile defense sensors in the Gulf as prime targets in any showdown with Washington, reportedly warning Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Turkey that American AN/TPY-2 radar sites on their soil could be struck if a wider conflict erupts; these high-powered X-band radars form the backbone of regional defences by feeding critical tracking data to THAAD and Patriot batteries, and military analysts caution that while interceptor launchers are dispersed and hardened, the radar nodes themselves are far more exposed making them both a strategic vulnerability and a tempting first-strike objective for Tehran.