Iran has launched a missile attack on an American air base in Qatar which Donald Trump has dismissed it as a "weak response" to US attacks, while he also urged Iran and Israel to make peace after 11 days of mutual hostilities.

Iran had threatened to retaliate against the United States after US bombers dropped 30,000-pound bunker-busters on Iranian underground nuclear facilities at the weekend, joining Israel's air war against Iran, and Trump had raised the possibility of the Iranian government being toppled.

The Iranian military said the attack was "devastating and powerful" but US officials said no US personnel were killed or injured in the attack on the air base, the largest US military installation in the Middle East.

The strike threatened to widen a conflict that began on June 13 with an Israeli strike on Iran targeting its nuclear programme and ballistic missiles. Qatar's defence minister told Al Jazeera its air defences had intercepted missiles directed at the air base.

Iran's army commander-in-chief General Amir Hatami and high-ranked commanders in central headquarters, Iran. – Iranian army press service/AP

"We did not assault anyone, and we will never accept being assaulted by anyone," Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a statement. "We will not submit to anyone’s aggression – this is the logic of the Iranian nation."

Iran gave advance notice to the US via diplomatic channels hours ahead of the attack, as well as to Qatari authorities. Trump seized on that as a positive sign.

"I want to thank Iran for giving us early notice, which made it possible for no lives to be lost, and nobody to be injured," Trump wrote on his Truth Social media site.

"Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same."

He said Iran fired 14 missiles at the air base, calling it "a very weak response, which we expected, and have very effectively countered".

"I am pleased to report that NO Americans were harmed and hardly any damage was done," Trump wrote.

"Most importantly, they’ve gotten it all out of their 'system', and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE," Trump wrote.

The attack strained Iran's relationship with its Arab neighbours – Qatar condemned it, as did Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq.

Supporters of Iraqi militia in Basra celebrate attack on U.S base in Qatar. – Reuters

The attack came shortly after a Western diplomat saids there had been a credible threat to a US military base in the Gulf state following the unprecedented US airstrikes on Iran's uranium enrichment program.

A source familiar with the matter said that Qatar, situated just across the Gulf from Iran, had shut its airspace after receiving the advance warning from Iran.

Bahrain, another US-allied Gulf Arab state just to the north of Qatar, said it had also shut its airspace after the Iranian strike against the base.

In addition, the US Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq had activated its air defence system out of concern for a potential attack, military sources said.

The main US military base in Iraq's western neighbour Syria was also on full alert for possible attack by Iran or Iran-aligned militia groups, a Syrian security source said.

Qatar, a small, wealthy Gulf Arab state, had earlier announced it had closed its airspace temporarily to ensure the safety of residents and visitors. That followed an advisory from the US embassy in Qatar to Americans to shelter in place, out of what it said was "an abundance of caution".

Two US officials said Washington had assessed that Iran could carry out attacks targeting American forces in the Middle East soon, although the US was still seeking a diplomatic resolution that would see Tehran forgo any reprisal.

Trump says Iran gave US notice before attack on Qatar military base. – Reuters

Israel said it carried out its most extensive wave of attacks on Tehran ever on Monday.

Targets included a Tehran prison where Iran's leadership holds political opponents, in a renewed demonstration of its willingness to strike beyond its previously stated military and nuclear targets to target key pillars of Iran's ruling system.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as Tehran sought backing from one of its last major power friends for its next steps.

Striking 'regime targets'

Israel made clear that its strikes on Evin prison and other targets in Tehran were intended to hit the Iranian ruling apparatus broadly, and its ability to sustain power.

Iran's IRIB state broadcaster released video showing rescue workers combing the flattened wreckage of a building at the prison, carrying a wounded man on a stretcher. The Mizan news outlet of Iran's judiciary said urgent action was being taken to protect the health and safety of inmates there.

• MIDEAST: Strike exchange continues as nuclear fears mount

Evin has long been Iran's primary prison for political detainees and people accused of espionage, as well as the site of executions that remain strong memories for the opposition. Several high-profile foreign prisoners are also held there.

Iran in 'survival mode' after US strike, analyst says. – Reuters

Israel's military said it had also struck Revolutionary Guard command centres responsible for internal security in the Tehran area.

The military was "currently striking, with unprecedented force, regime targets and governmental repression bodies in the heart of Tehran", Defence Minister Israel Katz said in a statement.

Much of Tehran's population of 10 million has fled after 10 days of bombing. Tasnim News Agency reported a strike at an electricity feeder station in the Evin neighbourhood. Power company Tavanir reported some areas in the capital experienced electricity cuts.

Limited options 

Since Trump joined Israel's campaign by dropping massive bunker-buster bombs on Iranian nuclear production sites on Sunday morning, Iran has repeatedly threatened to retaliate.

"Mr Trump, the gambler, you may start this war, but we will be the ones to end it," Ebrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson for Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya central military headquarters, said in a recorded, English-language video statement.

The Trump administration maintains that its aim is solely to destroy Iran's nuclear program, not to open a wider war.

White House open to regime change in Iran, is monitoring for Strait of Hormuz closure. – AP

But in a social media post at the weekend, Trump spoke of toppling the hardline clerical rulers who have been Washington's principal foes in the Middle East since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Five insiders with knowledge of the discussions said efforts had been ramped up to anoint a successor for Iran's 86-year-old supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His son Mojtaba, 56, and Hassan Khomeini, 53, grandson of the revolution's founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, are now seen as the frontrunners, they said.